Before the Shining Shore
by Enthusiastic Fish
Summary: Final part of my selkie series (Call of the Sea, On my Journey Home, Not a Wave of Trouble Roll). Tim has a big secret. He tries to keep it hidden from everyone, but the bigger the secret, the greater the danger of it coming out. This time, the revelation doesn't just affect him, either. Eighteen chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** This is part four of my selkie series (_Call of the Sea_, _On My Journey Home, Not a Wave of Trouble Roll_). It's been a long time since I started it. I had a hard time getting it going but I knew it needed to be written. Tim's life and experience as a selkie was just something I felt needed one last bit. So this is the final part of the series (unless something really makes me come back to it).

**Disclaimer:** I do not now, nor have I ever owned NCIS. I haven't watched the show in more than a year and I'm pretty sure they won't ever turn Tim into a selkie on the show. :) I'm not making money on this.

* * *

**Before the Shining Shore  
**by Enthusiastic Fish

**Chapter 1**

_The waves moved up and down, up and down. He moved with the rhythm of the waves, smoothly swimming, now below, now above. A deep breath and then down to the bottom. The dark waters beckoned to him, called him to come back._

_He reached out, hopelessly..._

Tim woke up to his alarm, after an extremely restless night. He felt awful. He couldn't get comfortable and he felt like he might have a fever.

He groaned.

"I can't go to work like this," he mumbled. "I feel terrible."

He didn't like to call in sick, but this was a day for it. First, he called HR (the only people who scared him more than Gibbs did) and reported his illness, telling them he was taking a sick day. Then, he braced himself for calling Gibbs. The phone rang twice.

"_Gibbs."_

"Boss, it's McGee," Tim said. "I woke up sick, today. I think I've got a fever. I couldn't sleep all night. I've already reported it to HR."

"_You can't come in?"_

"If I did, I'd be worthless," Tim said. "Honestly, Boss, I feel terrible."

"_You need a hospital?"_

"I hope not. I'm planning on staying in bed all day. If I still feel bad tonight, I'll see a doctor. Otherwise, I'm hoping it's just a passing thing. I'm sorry."

"_Don't apologize."_

There was a pause. Tim knew Gibbs was deciding whether or not to force him to come to work.

"_Fine."_

"Thanks, Boss," Tim said.

Gibbs just grunted and hung up. It was a typical response. Tim wasn't surprised by it. He dragged himself out of bed to shower, hoping that would make him feel better. (It didn't.) Then, he dragged himself back to bed. He rested there before dragging himself to the kitchen to eat something, hoping that would help him feel better. (It didn't.) Then, it was back to bed with a glass of water and crushed ice and some saltines. His plan currently consisted of sleeping and watching TV. That would probably be the best medicine for whatever ailed him.

Tim slept through most of the morning, but around noon, there was a loud knock at his door.

He sat up and groaned, regretting the quick movement.

Another loud knock. Tim groaned again, thinking he knew who it was. Finally, he got out of bed and walked to the door. He looked through the peephole.

One more groan and he opened the door.

"What do you want, Tony?" Tim asked.

Tony smiled. "I'm just checking up on you, and you're not looking so hot, McGee."

"I'm feeling plenty hot," Tim said. "It's not that bad. I'm hoping it's just a minor thing and I'll be fine tomorrow."

"Yeah, but you're a little gray. It's not a good look for you."

Tim laughed tiredly. "I don't plan on keeping it. I slept all morning, and I'd still be sleeping now if you weren't here to check on me."

Tony laughed, too, and held up a sack. "Well, I did come bearing gifts. Gibbs didn't say that you were throwing up or anything..."

"No. Just feverish and tired."

"Then, I brought you something to eat for lunch. Nothing heavy or anything. But if you're sick, you should eat something."

"I'm not very hungry."

"Then, don't eat very much."

There was plenty of logic in that.

"Okay. Come in."

Tim stood back and let Tony come in.

"You can get back in bed, Tim. I'll bring it in."

"Okay."

Tim didn't bother protesting. He walked back to his room and crawled back into bed. Tony came in.

"It's soup, so don't spill," he said.

"Maybe I should get up and eat in the kitchen," Tim said, sitting up. "I don't want to spill on my sheets."

"No. You can handle it," Tony said. "I think you should stay down."

Tim leaned back, glad that Tony had stopped him.

Tony rigged up a lapboard for Tim and then set out the soup and bread he'd brought. It looked wonderful and Tim ate it all.

"I thought you weren't hungry," Tony said, grinning.

"I guess I was. Thanks, Tony. I appreciate it. Now, I'd like to go back to sleep."

"Sure. I can see when I'm not wanted."

Tim just smiled as Tony took away the remains of lunch. Once he could, he lay down and curled up under his blankets. The TV was on, playing something he wasn't paying attention to, but the sound was nice. He closed his eyes, ready to sleep again.

"If you aren't feeling better tonight, you'd better let us know, Probie," Tony said.

Tim didn't even open his eyes.

"Yeah, sure," he said.

"Promise?"

"Promise," Tim mumbled.

"Sweet dreams," Tony said.

"Yeah."

Tim knew Tony could let himself out, so he abandoned himself to sleep.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

"How was he?" Ziva asked.

"Definitely sick, but it didn't seem too serious unless it lasts," Tony said, settling at his desk. "He ate everything I brought."

"That is good," Ziva said.

Gibbs walked in, raising a silent eyebrow.

"He really is sick, Boss," Tony said. "He's not faking it, and he wasn't acting weird. Just sick."

Gibbs nodded.

"I'm going to check on him tonight after work."

"I will come with you," Ziva said.

Tony nodded and they all got back to work.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

_Swimming through the ocean. It was home. The water was cool and smooth as he slipped effortlessly through it. Stroke after stroke. Deeper and deeper. Then, up to the surface, breathing in the salty air. One breath and then back down._

_Freedom. Home. He strove to get there..._

"Tim?"

A hand on his shoulder, shaking him gently.

"Hey, Probie. You alive?"

Tim reluctantly pulled himself away from the wonderful and yet painful dreams, opening his eyes just long enough to see Tony and Ziva standing over him. Ziva had a hand on his forehead.

"How did you get in?" he mumbled.

"Take a wild guess, Probie."

"What're you doing here?" he asked.

"You have a fever, McGee," Ziva said, sounding concerned. "Has it been like this all day?"

"Don't know. Was asleep through most of it," Tim said. He tried to roll over and go back to sleep, thinking that Tony and Ziva would just disappear.

The hand on his shoulder wouldn't let him.

"Tim, I think it is time to go to a doctor."

Tim shook his head.

"No. Just tired. Want to sleep."

He closed his eyes and tried to roll away again. Again, he was prevented. In fact, the hand started pulling him to sit up.

"Nope. It's time to get a checkup, Tim," Tony said. "Up and at 'em."

Tim let them pull him upright.

"Come on. Just tired, guys." It was really hard to wake up.

"Then, you can sleep at the hospital."

"Yeah, that's so much better than my comfy bed here," he mumbled.

Still, they seemed determined, so Tim let them urge him out of bed, out of his apartment and into a car. He didn't pay attention to whose it was. He fell asleep on the drive over, but they woke him up again to go into the hospital ER. Tim sat down between them and fell asleep again, leaning on one or the other of them. He couldn't tell which.

Then, he was being nudged to wake up yet again.

"Come on, Tim. It's your turn."

"I want to go back to bed," Tim said, petulantly.

"After this. I promise."

Tim let himself be led to an exam room where they let him lay down again. He fell asleep.

"Mr. McGee? Can you open your eyes for me?"

Tim blinked a few times and saw an older man looking at him.

"Very good. Now, just follow my finger with your eyes."

Tim did as he said, but he really just wanted to go back to sleep.

"Any other problems besides the fever?" he asked.

"Tired," Tim said.

"He said that he'd been sleeping all day." That was Tony. "And he didn't seem so bad when I brought him lunch in the afternoon."

"So the fever came first and then the drowsiness? Is that right, Mr. McGee?"

Tim yawned and shrugged. He tried to engage with the conversation.

"Don't know. I felt blah this morning. Called in sick and slept most of the day."

"Okay. Well, the fever is a little high and this drowsiness does have me concerned. I think we should do some tests."

"Don't wanna take a test," Tim said. "I want to sleep."

"You don't have to take a test, Mr. McGee. Feel free to go back to sleep, but we will be drawing some blood."

Tim heard the words but he was already letting himself fall asleep and the meaning was lost. He closed his eyes and lay back.

"Make sure you use the right crayon. No maroon for blood."

There was a chuckle.

"I'll definitely keep that in mind."

"Gray. Like a seal..." Tim said and fell asleep.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tony and Ziva looked and Tim and then at the doctor, very concerned.

"What's wrong with him?" Tony asked. "I swear he was mostly coherent this afternoon. He ate some soup and went back to sleep. What's going on?"

"I'm not sure, but we'll get started on trying to figure it out. Given the situation, I think it would be best to admit him for tonight. We'll re-evaluate in the morning."

"It seems strange that it would be so sudden," Ziva said. "It seems to have come out of nowhere."

"Fevers can be like that. Usually a fever is a response to infection, but there are plenty of other causes and we'll check them. If he awakens tomorrow feeling better, it may end up being idiopathic."

"Meaning?" Tony asked.

"Meaning that we don't know the cause. But we'll work on it. For now, we'll get him into a room."

"Okay."

Tim was quickly moved out of the exam room and into a regular room. They put him on an IV, because some of his symptoms were similar to that of dehydration, even though he had not expressed any particular thirst. After all that was done, Tony and Ziva looked at each other and then at Tim who was still asleep.

"This reminds me of that night," Ziva said. "Only not so bad."

Tony knew what night she meant and he nodded.

"But he didn't say he was burning and why would it be happening again? What caused it _couldn't _happen again."

"I do not know. It just seems very strange to me."

"Do you want to call Gibbs or should I?"

Ziva smiled a little. "Since it is not our fault, either one of us can do it, but I will, and you can drive me back to my car."

Tony nodded and followed Ziva out of the room. They left the hospital and Tony listened as Ziva called to tell Gibbs that Tim would very likely not be back to work in the morning. She hung up after a minute or two and looked at him.

"What did he say?" Tony asked.

"Very little. Just that he would make sure Tim is on sick leave."

"Was he worried?"

"Probably, but he did not say so."

"Yeah. Would he _ever_ say so?"

"No."

"All right. I'll stop by tomorrow morning and check on him, see if he's improved."

"Okay. Good night, Tim," Ziva said.

Then, they left.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

For two days, Tim slept and woke in the hospital. The fever had not abated and the doctors were completely stumped. Tim missed most of it. He would wake up, complain about being hot and tired and then go back to sleep. The others were worried, especially when he started mumbling about the sea in his sleep. He didn't seem distressed, just irritable.

Tony went to visit before work on the third day and got a major shock.

Tim was awake, alert and smiling.

"Hey, Tony. They said you'd probably come by. In fact, they said you were here a lot. Sorry that I didn't notice."

"McGee! You're conscious and coherent!"

Tim grinned and nodded. He still looked a little gray, but his eyes were clear.

"Yeah. They said that my fever started going down around midnight. I feel like new, but they're not letting me leave yet."

"Well, it's been two days, Probie. You don't just shrug that off."

Tim shrugged. "I would if they'd let me, but they won't, so I'll wait until they do. I hope it's soon."

The door opened and a nurse came in.

"Good morning, Mr. McGee. Still chipper, I see."

"Yes. I feel great. I get that you don't want to risk a relapse or anything, but I'm fine, now!"

"Let _us_ determine that."

Tim sighed but submitted as the nurse took his temperature and did some simple tests of Tim's brain function. He passed with flying colors.

"Your temperature is still a bit elevated, and it's obvious that your body was responding to _something_, Mr. McGee. But you _are_ doing much better. It was surprisingly quick, I must say, and I'm glad to see it. We're going to keep you here for a few more hours. Your doctor will want to do a final check before he lets you leave, but if you continue on this track, I don't see any reason why you wouldn't be allowed to go."

"Excellent. I guess I'll try to be a patient patient, then."

The nurse chuckled and left.

"See?" Tim said. "I'm almost better. I'm sorry that I worried you guys so much. Really, for me, it was all a blur. I know that I woke up a number of times, but nothing really penetrated beyond that."

Tony sat down on the edge of Tim's bed and looked at him, closely. Tim definitely looked better. He seemed almost completely recovered, but there was _something_ not quite right. Tony just couldn't put his finger on it.

"Is something wrong, Tim?"

"No. Something is finally right. Why?"

"I don't know. Something just seems a little off, a little different."

"I don't know what to tell you. But thanks for dragging me here. Ziva was there, too, wasn't she?"

"Yeah, she was."

"I really appreciate it. I probably needed to be in the hospital, but I was too tired to realize it."

"Well, then, you just need to realize that you should stay here until they let you go."

"Yeah, I know. I'm just impatient," Tim said and smiled. Then, he looked down.

"What is it?"

"Thanks, Tony," Tim said, his voice low. "You guys have been there for me through a lot of things. This was pretty minor, but it's still something else you were here for."

"Hey, don't start getting all mushy, Tim. We're friends. That's what friends do. That's all."

"I know."

Tim looked up and smiled.

"Don't worry. I'm done."

"Good. I've got to get to work, but call us when you get out. We'll give you a ride home."

"Okay."

Tony left, thrilled that Tim was suddenly better but still feeling that there was something going on that he didn't get.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

"Well, Mr. McGee, you defy medical explanation."

Tim smiled at his doctor.

"I try. You have no idea what happened?"

"None. The closest was dehydration, and I think that was part of it, but that wasn't really right, either. What I want from _you_ is a promise that if your symptoms come back, _you'll _come back. We don't have any reason to keep you here, but you need to take it easy for the next couple of days _and_ be aware of what's happening. Fevers like this could recur, especially when we don't know what caused them in the first place. Promise?"

"Cross my heart," Tim said.

The doctor chuckled and signed Tim out.

Tim managed to get home on his own. Because Tony had insisted that he call for a ride, Tim had tried, but they were all out at a crime scene. Quite frankly, Tim was relieved. He wanted to get home without anyone feeling like they had to stay with him.

He got a taxi, rode home and then went into his apartment and into the bathroom. Quickly, he took off his clothes and turned around so that he could look at his back, although he didn't really need to look at it. He had felt it.

There was a large gray patch in the middle of his back. He had discovered it when he had awakened in the middle of the night before everyone else had realized he was on the road to recovery. He hadn't told anyone about it and had been relieved to get into his own clothes (with backs on them) without any witnesses.

But now, alone his apartment, he looked at his back and took a deep breath before tentatively touching the edge of it.

He knew what it was.

His seal skin was growing back.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Tim got permission from Gibbs to miss another two days of work. He didn't like to do that, but he could use his doctor's instructions as an excuse. Anything to keep him out of sight while his seal skin was growing back. He had no idea how long it would take, or if it would grow back completely (he didn't know what would happen if it didn't), but he hoped that it would be quick because it was extremely uncomfortable. He itched all the time and it got to the point that he could feel it as it grew. The pace _was_ increasing and he was glad, but he really hoped that no one was around when it finished.

He had toyed with the idea of telling his friends, but in the end, he knew that he had to keep this completely to himself. If anyone ever found out, human _or_ selkie, he didn't know what would happen.

Mostly, though, he was trying not to become obsessed with this unexpected chance. He had given up his skin already. He would never have thought that it would come about that he _could_ have it back. He had told Ducky it was like losing a limb, and limbs just didn't grow back. Seals weren't like lizards, growing tails back after they were lost. How had this happened?

He went into the bathroom and looked at himself again. Much of his body was now covered with a smooth, gray skin. Was this how it had happened when he was a baby? He didn't know. But there was a much larger surface area now than there had been. So far, he was able to cover up his seal skin with his clothing when he had visitors checking up on him.

...but what about when the appendages grew in? It would be very difficult to hide flippers in place of hands and feet. Tim was worried about when that might happen. At the rate things were going, he felt that there was a good chance his skin would finish growing back soon, but he had no idea.

And there was no one he could ask. Even if he dared tell his friends and family about this, they'd have nothing to contribute. If he tried asking the selkies, not only would they not know, they would likely try to kill him to eliminate any risk of discovery...because he couldn't go back to the herd. After what had happened last year with the one man who had believed they were real and wanted to wipe them out, the selkies had become even more cautious. Tim didn't blame them, but he wasn't going to present himself for execution, and he would _not_ go through the agony of destroying it again. The first time had almost killed him, and he didn't think he could survive it a second time, especially knowing exactly how it would feel.

No, if this worked out like he hoped, he was keeping it. He was staying here and he was keeping his skin. No one would take this chance from him.

As he thought that, a tendril of excitement swirled through him making him want to jump for joy. The idea of having his skin back for the first time in nearly twenty years was enough to make him shake with anticipation.

He tamped that down quickly. There was no way of knowing if it would work the way he hoped. There was no way of knowing what would come of this. He had to stay calm.

A knock on the door startled him out of his thoughts. Tim looked at himself. Naked...except for a seal skin that was rapidly growing back. That would look more than a little strange, even if they accepted it. Quickly, he pulled on his clothes, made sure that nothing gray was showing and hurried to the door. He opened it and saw both Tony and Ziva there.

"Hey, guys. Sorry I didn't open right away. I was in the bathroom when you knocked."

"You are looking much better, McGee," Ziva said, smiling at him.

Tim regretted that he was keeping this from them, but he couldn't say anything about it.

"Thanks."

"Are you coming back tomorrow?"

"That's my plan. I'm feeling almost back to normal. One more night of good sleep ought to do it," Tim said, hoping they'd take the none-too-subtle hint that he wasn't interested in staying up.

Tony grinned. "Nice, McGee. Reject us before we even make an offer."

"Tomorrow night, okay?" Tim asked. "I really do want to go to bed early tonight so I'll be ready for work."

Ziva took Tim's hand and squeezed it.

"That is fine. Tony is just whining."

"Thanks, and thanks for checking up on me. I'm glad you guys care that much," Tim said, sincerely.

"Hey, we have to make sure you're happy here, since that's what you wanted," Tony said. "We can't lay down on the job."

Tim chuckled. "You haven't."

He felt the skin growing toward his wrists and he knew he had to get them to leave, but he didn't want to do anything that would make them suspicious.

But, unexpectedly, Ziva saved him. She let go of his hand and kissed him on the cheek.

"We will see you tomorrow, Tim."

"See you tomorrow," Tim said and closed the door after Tony and Ziva turned away.

He sighed with relief as he locked the door and then closed all the blinds in his apartment. It wouldn't do for anyone to see him like this and the flippers were coming. He could tell.

"Is this how butterflies feel when they change from caterpillars? Only in reverse?" Tim wondered aloud.

He went back into his bedroom and took off all his clothes while he still could. Then, he went into the bathroom and filled the tub with water.

Just in case.

After that, he went back into his bedroom and lay down. All the lights were off. The TV was on, but that was all. He settled down and hoped for a quick finish to this.

One benefit to this was that he really was tired. The process of regrowing his skin was sapping a lot of his energy and so, after a few minutes, in spite of his worries, his excitement, and his discomfort, Tim fell asleep.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

The lights went out as Tony and Ziva reached the sidewalk.

"He was not kidding," Ziva said.

"Yeah, I guess so," Tony said.

"Do you not believe him?" Ziva asked.

"I don't know."

"What is it, Tony?"

"I don't know," Tony said, again. He looked up toward Tim's apartment. "I feel like there's something going on. I just don't know what it is. Tim is just a little off."

"He was in the hospital with a fever for two days, Tony," Ziva said. "Why would you think he would be normal, now?"

"No, it's not that. I can't explain it. It's...something. I don't know." Tony sighed. "I'll be glad when he's back tomorrow."

"So will I."

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tim woke up in the middle of the night and tried to sit up.

But it didn't work. He didn't appear to have a waist any longer. He looked at himself. If he could have, he would have smiled. If he could have, he would have shouted for joy.

But he couldn't.

He was a seal.

_I'm a seal!_

He couldn't make a sound, but he was nearly bursting with a feeling akin to ecstasy. He wanted to get out to the sea right this very moment, but that wasn't possible. Not right now. Instead, he waddled out of bed and into the bathroom. He managed to maneuver himself into the bathtub, splashing water all over the floor. It was too small to do anything other than lay there, but he felt his skin, his seal skin. He felt whole in a way he'd almost forgotten. He felt like he had been given a gift that nothing in the world could ever top.

He felt like a real selkie for the first time since losing his skin.

He felt like himself.

He hadn't realized just how foreign, how altered everything about himself had been, until now when he finally had back what he had been missing for so long. He felt like his heart was going to beat right out of his seal body. He was so excited, so happy.

So whole.

He lay there for untold hours, not moving except to lift his nose above the level of the water and then slink back down, holding his breath for as long as possible.

Then, finally, he knew that he had to remove his seal skin and return to the human world. He would have to go back to the sea to truly enjoy what he had, but he would have to do it cautiously and when he had the time to do it. A few days off...maybe he could pretend to be going to visit his mother. Something.

Regardless, now, he had to see if the instinct he had possessed as a child was still present. Could he remember how to do this?

He pulled himself out of the bathtub and onto the floor of the bathroom, splashing more water over the edge. He hoped that his downstairs neighbor wouldn't get any leaks or anything. He just couldn't maneuver very well in this form.

Then, he waddled his way back into the bedroom where there was plenty of space to do what he hoped he remembered how to do. He sat on the floor for a few minutes, just trying to calm himself down. Then, he lifted his head up and stretched...

...and removed his seal skin, leaving his naked human body standing in the middle of his bedroom, at four in the morning.

Now that he _could_ smile, Tim did. His smile was so wide he felt he might crack his face.

"I can't believe it," he said. "I can't believe it."

He held his seal skin in his hands, feeling the supple texture, like an extremely smooth leather. He hugged it to him, never wanting to part with it again, never wanting to lose that piece of himself. Now that he had his seal skin back, he couldn't believe he'd been willing to destroy it before. Was it just all the years he'd spent away from it that had made it possible? He didn't know.

All he knew was that he would _never_ let it go. Never. Never again. He couldn't and he wouldn't.

And the only way to be sure of that was to keep it a secret from every single person and selkie. No one could ever know that he had his skin back, that he was finally whole and healed after so many years of living maimed.

Slowly, he sat down on the floor, cross-legged, still holding his skin, stroking it, wishing he could just leave and go back to the sea right this very moment, but there was a tendril of humanity that was keeping him at least slightly grounded. Once the initial thrill was over, he would still want to be with his human friends, with his human family, with his human job. He wouldn't want to lose all that. It was just that, for now, all he wanted was to be a seal again.

He sat on the floor, shaking, holding his skin, for more than an hour. In fact, he was holding it until his alarm went off.

It was a real struggle to put it down in order to get ready for work. He didn't even want to let it out of his sight.

Finally, though, he was ready to leave and he sat down on his bed, holding his skin again. Should he take it with him to work or should he hide it here? He didn't want to leave it behind, but he didn't want to risk it being seen, either. All of his friends had seen a seal skin before. They would recognize it for what it was.

In the end, he took a deep breath and hid it in a small trunk he kept under his bed, right back by the wall.

Then, he left his apartment, ready for work.

Hoping he could keep his secret.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

"He's late," Tony said.

"By two minutes," Ziva said. "There is no need to worry about something so trivial."

The elevator dinged and Tim got off, looking...different. Tony looked at Ziva and she seemed to think the same thing, but if asked why, it was impossible to say. Something about Tim was different. He was carrying himself differently.

"Good morning!" he said, sounding almost giddy.

"Excited to be back?" Ziva asked.

Tim grinned at her. "Why would you say that?"

"Because you look like you just won the lottery, Probie," Tony said. "What's going on?"

"I'm just in a good mood, Tony. I'm not sick and I'm back at work. It's a beautiful day. What more could I ask for?"

"I can think of a few things," Tony said, but he couldn't bring himself to ruin Tim's mood. It had been a long time since he'd seemed so happy.

Actually, had Tim _ever_ seemed this happy?

"So you are all recovered?" Ziva asked.

"I feel like I've never been sick in my life, Ziva," Tim said. "I feel like I could...fly!"

"Okay, did you get into some kind of happy drug?" Tony asked, only half-joking. "You're starting to scare me."

Tim laughed. "No, I didn't. I just woke up this morning and everything seemed right."

"Good. Get to work," Gibbs said as he strode into the bullpen. Then, he stopped and looked at Tim. "You're all right?"

"I'm great, Boss. Like I was never sick. I'm ready to work," Tim said, sounding more normal. Still happier than would normally be expected, but more like Tony felt was usual.

"Good."

Gibbs began giving orders like usual and Tim got to work on his computer with gusto.

All day was like that. Tim was happy. And it seemed strange to Tony that this was the problem. He hadn't ever thought of Tim as being generally unhappy, but what he was seeing here was either Tim high on something or else _really_ happy. How sad was it that this was unusual.

If something had happened that made Tim happier, Tony knew he should be glad of it. He just wasn't sure about it, and the last time Tim had acted definitely out of character, it had led to a momentary meltdown.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"So what's going on with you, Tim?" Abby asked.

"Everyone keeps asking me that," Tim said. "I'm just happy, Abbs. I'm glad to be here with everyone and things seem to be going right. Why does there have to be something wrong?"

Tim had been back at work for a week and his jubilant attitude hadn't ebbed, but more people were noticing it and some had been asking for the reason.

"I don't think anything is _wrong_," Abby said. "But I can't help comparing this to how you were before, and you seem different. I can't quite put my finger on what it is that's different. It almost seems familiar but with you it's different...and I can't explain why that is."

"It seems familiar but it's different?" Tim repeated.

"I know. It doesn't sound right, but I am right. It's not just about you being happy, Tim. There's something else. And it's nothing wrong. It's just different. I'm going to figure out what it is that's going on."

"Nothing else is going on," Tim said. "I feel really good, and I didn't think I had to be depressed and upset all the time."

"You don't!" Abby said quickly. "That's not what we're meaning when we ask. ...but Tim, were you always depressed and upset before?"

Tim rolled his eyes. "No, I wasn't."

Abby smiled and patted his cheek.

"We're happy that you're happy, Tim. Give us a little while longer and we'll get used to you singing and dancing around the building."

"I am not singing _or_ dancing."

The computer dinged at them.

"Ah, and now, we can get to work and you can stop worrying about people worrying that you're too happy."

"Good," Tim said, emphatically.

Abby just laughed and the two of them got back to work.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Gibbs watched as Tim went throughout his day. Everyone had noticed, by now, that Tim had changed. Something about that time being ill seemed to have burned away a lot of his sadness. But why? Beyond that, though, like everyone else, Gibbs had seen something else. Tim had an almost otherworldly quality about him that he'd never had before. Privately, in the deep recesses of his mind, he thought that Tim seemed more selkie-like than he had in the past. And it was strange that he thought that because it wasn't as though Tim was showing less emotion. He wasn't. He seemed genuinely happy, moreso than he'd ever been in all the time that Gibbs had known him.

Later, after everyone had left, Gibbs lingered and did some last-minute work before heading out of the building. When he got out, he happened to glance over toward the Anacostia and, to his surprise, someone was there.

It looked like Tim.

He changed trajectory and headed in that direction. When he got closer, he saw that Tim was just standing there, staring out at the river. Perfectly motionless.

Or not. As Gibbs watched him, Tim began to sway, just slightly. It was as if he was hearing a tune no one else could hear.

And suddenly, it hit him. Tim reminded Gibbs of the selkie, his father. He had stood, almost in this exact spot, staring at the river and Gibbs had been surprised at how different he had looked. It had been like seeing an alien. He was not human and it had been obvious. Now, Tim wasn't _that_ different, but it was there. That indefinable something that marked him as different. Something not quite human.

Why was it visible, now, when no one had ever seen it before?

"McGee," he said.

Tim turned and looked at him, his eyes, for just a moment, dark and distant, but then, back to green. So quickly that Gibbs wasn't sure if the change had been anything but the fact that Tim was now facing the light from the building.

"What's up, Boss?"

Gibbs raised an eyebrow and Tim smiled. He seemed almost preternaturally calm.

"Just thinking."

"Can't do that at home?"

"Seems a little empty sometimes, since Jethro died. I need to get a new dog."

"That's what you were thinking about?"

Tim shook his head. "No. Boss, could I have a few days off next week?"

"What for?"

Tim hesitated a little and almost looked as he had before his illness. That same uncertainty...which was now, generally, missing.

"See my family, regroup a little."

"Regroup from what? Being sick?"

"No. Not exactly. Everyone keeps asking me what's going on, but I do feel a little unsettled and I think I just need a little time away to get back to normal."

"What's normal, McGee?" Gibbs asked. "Hiding who you really are?"

Tim raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"What do you mean?"

"Are you trying to be what you're not or are you trying to be who you are?"

Tim smiled a little. "Who am I, Boss?" He looked around and lowered his voice. "A selkie?"

"Yes."

"I don't have a choice but to hide that. That's a secret I'll have to keep for the rest of my life. ...skin or no skin."

"You haven't been hiding it as well."

"I haven't?"

"You look like your father," Gibbs said.

Tim shook his head. "No. I don't. I know that I don't. My father has dark eyes, dark hair. I look human."

"Not just now, you didn't."

"What do you mean?" he asked again.

"You stood there just like your father did last year. You looked just like he did, standing and staring at the river. The same look in your eye, the same bearing."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"I didn't realize it."

"Don't hide that," Gibbs said.

Tim shook his head again. "I've never had any problem just being human, Boss. ...well, not since I became an adult, anyway. There's nothing wrong with it."

"Except that you're _not _just human. And you never have been. And you never will be."

Tim hitched his shoulder uncomfortably and looked back at the river.

"Doesn't mean I have to parade it around for everyone to see."

"No, it doesn't."

Silence fell as Tim stared at the river. Gibbs relented.

"Submit your request to HR. I'll approve it."

"Thanks, Boss," Tim said.

"Now, go home."

Tim smiled. "I will. Thanks."

He walked away from the Anacostia without a single backward glance. He still had that same different look to him. Gibbs didn't want to encourage Tim to deny who he was, but he had to admit that Tim was right about needing to keep his selkie side a secret. Look at what had happened just a year ago.

A few days off wasn't a problem and might even help.

When Tim submitted his request for three days off, plus the weekend, Gibbs approved it and hoped for the best.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tim felt guilty about basically lying to Gibbs. He wasn't going to see his family, not any of them. He was going home. For the first time in more than 20 years, he was finally going home. He couldn't feel guilty about wanting that, but he did feel guilty about hiding it.

But now, he was driving to a place where he was sure there were no seals and would be very few people. Just a stretch of coast that didn't have a beach but did have access to the ocean. It was nighttime and he parked his car. He walked out to the water, seal skin in hand. He was dressed only in his boxers. The rest of his clothes were in the car.

Doing this would be making a permanent decision about what he was going to do with the rest of his life. So far, just putting on his skin in his apartment hadn't alerted anyone to his new situation, but there was a definite risk that the selkies might sense him. He was positive they weren't nearby, but they _were_ cautious. Moreso now than they had been before.

_But I can't not do this,_ Tim thought to himself.

No more delays. No more questions. No more uncertainty.

Tim looked around once more.

All alone.

He began to run into the water. As he did, he pulled on his seal skin and splashed forward into the deeper waters. At first, he couldn't do it right. It was like his seal limbs had atrophied from so many years of disuse. He fumbled, flipping from one side to the other, sinking when he meant to float, ending up on his back when he wanted to be on his stomach.

He persisted, mostly because of the indescribable joy he felt at being home. After a few minutes, he felt more at ease and he began to reenact the things he'd dreamed of so many times. He dove down to the bottom and then swam to the surface, bursting out of the water with a leap, breathing deeply and then diving down again.

How could he ever describe the beauty of this moment? How could he ever explain how it felt to be whole, complete? How could he tell people what this meant to him? How could he have survived for so many years without this?

Each questioned was answered in the same way: he couldn't.

But he could revel in this joy.

Time lost all meaning for him as he swam. He hunted. He ate. He slept. He did everything as a seal that he hadn't been able to do before. It was glorious. He couldn't contain his joy as he swam far out to sea, only coming to shore when he needed a rest. He avoided as much human interaction as he could, wanting to be sure that his actions were not seen to be strange since seals were generally in large groups, not alone. But he rarely saw anyone, human or otherwise. He'd had to hide from a shark once, but beyond that, he just reveled in his time in the ocean.

His only regret was that he had to do this all alone. He would love to be able to frolic with the seals, to join in the migration with the other selkies, but it was impossible. The selkies would kill him and the seals might pass along the message that there was a selkie with them. It likely wouldn't be with any malice, but the seals weren't made for concealment. It just wasn't part of who they were. So solitude was what he had to accept.

However, the chance to be here was all he really needed.

Finally, he realized that he didn't know how long he'd been out here, and he knew he had to get back.

Swimming smoothly through the water, he made his way to the shore. He forced himself to look around and check for any humans around. ...and any selkies. He couldn't feel the presence of anyone. It was dark as he waddled out of the water and into a place that was not visible from the road. Then, he shook off the water and stretched upward, pulling off the seal skin. He took a breath, his first breath as a human in days, and grinned. He hurried to his car, relieved that it was still there. Then, he pulled on his clothes and checked the time.

He was surprised to find that he'd been out there for three days. It was the weekend. He had to go back to work in two days.

He was also a little chagrined to see that he'd missed a few phone calls. But only a little. He was still in a state of near-ecstasy and it was hard to feel anything negative.

However, Tim knew that he should return a few of them, if only so that no one worried about him. He had a call from Tony and decided to return that one first, even before he left. Tony tended to get weird about him sometimes.

"_McGee! Where are you?"_

"Hello, Tony. Nice to hear from you, too. How are things going?" Tim asked, unable to keep from smiling at Tony's worry.

"_I called you about three times."_

"Why?" Tim asked.

"_Just...to...you know... see how things were going."_

"Uh huh. Things are going fine, Tony. I am sorry that I missed your calls. I...didn't have my phone with me."

"_For three days?"_

"Just wanted to unplug a little."

"_Are you sure you're feeling okay, McGee? I don't think I've ever heard you say the words 'unplug' and 'want' in the same sentence."_

Tim laughed. "It can happen to the best of us. Was there something you needed?"

"_No. I'll bug you when you get back."_

"No cases needing my help?"

"_Not at the moment."_

"Okay. I'll be back tomorrow...in the afternoon, if Gibbs decides that I shouldn't have the whole weekend off."

"_Don't tell him that, Probie. He'll probably take it as an invitation."_

"Well, I've missed enough work in the last little while that I shouldn't sit back on my laurels for too long."

"_You can take time off, Tim,"_ Tony said, seriously. _"Just because the Boss doesn't think that you can, you do have personal days."_

"I know that."

"_So how's your vacation been?"_

"Good. Not doing much, just taking time away."

"_I thought you were going to see your family."_

"Well, I _was_," Tim said, feeling bad about the lie he was about to tell. "When it came right down to it, I decided that I needed to be by myself for a few days. I'm going to call my parents this weekend."

"_Which ones?"_

"Well, I can't exactly call my father, Tony," Tim said. "And so it would just have been my mother. My _parents_ are the ones you've met."

"_Interesting distinction. So where did you go?"_

"Nowhere in particular."

"_You went to the ocean, didn't you."_

"Maybe."

"_Alone?"_

"Maybe."

"_McGee, I know you don't want us acting like your mother, but really, man, haven't you had enough trouble there?"_

"No, Tony. I haven't," Tim said, trying to be as honest as he could. "I won't ever have enough trouble that it keeps me away from the ocean. You'll have to accept that. Even with what happened last year. I can't."

"_All right. Well, I won't mention it to Gibbs unless he asks, but if he finds out, you know that he'll give you the stink eye."_

"I think I'll survive," Tim said. "Thanks for worrying about me, Tony. I'll see you on Monday."

"_All right, McGee. I can take the hint. See you on Monday. Don't do anything stupid."_

"I won't."

Tony hung up and Tim took a breath. He hated the lies, but he couldn't tell the truth. He sat in the car for a while, looking out at the ocean, tempted to go back. But in the end, he put the key in the ignition and drove to the hotel he'd reserved three days ago.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Monday morning, Tim woke up in his bed, thinking about what he had done. He'd called his parents and he'd called his mother, not giving any hint about what had happened. He had enjoyed the conversation and it had grounded him a little.

Grounded. What an appropriate word for his situation. He needed to be grounded and not always at sea.

He smiled at his little bit of whimsy.

He sat up and looked at his skin. He picked it up and hugged it again. Would he ever take this for granted? He didn't think so. He had been too long without it to ever take it lightly.

Finally, Tim got up and got ready for work. He hid the skin under his bed again and headed to NCIS.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

"Well, you're looking pretty chipper," Tony said as Tim got off the elevator.

Really, Tim looked more than chipper. He looked like he was about burst out of his skin. He grinned.

"It's another great day, Tony," he said.

"Whatever you're drinking, Tim, share it with me," Tony said, lightly. Privately, though, he was still trying to figure out what was going on with Tim. This was soooo different.

Tim's smile widened and he opened his bag. Tony raised an eyebrow and then laughed in surprise when Tim tossed him a bottle of water.

"That's it," he said. "I highly recommend it. So do doctors, you know. Eight glasses a day."

"Okay, I asked for that one," Tony said and tossed it back.

Tim caught it handily and slipped it back into his bag. Then, he sat down at his desk and got ready for the day.

"So, what did I miss?"

"Nothing much. We started a new case on Friday. Drugs. Abby's been running samples because it looks like there have been some new drugs being sold."

"Anything I should be doing right this very minute?" Tim asked.

"Yeah. Work, McGee," Gibbs said as he walked into the bullpen. He paused and raised an eyebrow. "You all right?"

"Yeah, Boss. I'm good."

Gibbs nodded and strode over to his desk. He picked up a folder and then dropped it on Tim's desk.

"Get going."

"On it, Boss," Tim said.

Tony watched Tim throughout the day and nothing seemed off except for Tim's good mood. If it hadn't been for what he'd seen in the months and years before, this probably wouldn't seem so strange. When Ziva came in and welcomed him back, Tim was just as happy. She was effusive, but she did make eye contact with Tony and widened her eyes slightly. Tim was just not normal. Was it wrong to be worried about him being happy?

At the end of the day, Tim gathered up his stuff and headed out. Tony gave Ziva a look and then they hurried out of the building after him.

"Hey, Tim! Wait up!" Tony called.

Tim stopped and turned around.

"Yeah? What is it? Did I forget something?"

"No. Come with us. Get a drink."

Tim looked at him as if he could tell that there was more going on than just a drink, but then, he smiled and nodded.

"Sure, okay."

They went to a bar and each ordered a drink. Then, instead of sticking around the bar, they went to a quieter table. They talked for a few minutes about the case, and then, Tim raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, guys. What is it? You've been looking at me all day and looking at each other. I know there's a reason for this."

"Two reasons," Ziva corrected. "We wanted to hang out with you."

"And?" Tim asked.

"And...well, this is going to sound wrong," Tony said. "I know it will, so let me get it all out, okay?"

"Okay..."

"You're just too...happy, Tim," Tony said.

"Too happy?" Tim asked, looking more than a little irritated.

"Let him finish," Ziva interjected, quickly.

Tony looked at her gratefully.

"It's not how you've been, Tim, and that's sad. I realized today that I've never seen you really happy before. That's not how someone should be living and you're happy now which is so different that it seems...wrong. So...what we're wondering is what it is that's finally made you happy."

Tim looked down at his glass for a few seconds and then, when he looked up, Tony was surprised and a little dismayed to see a sheen of tears in Tim's eyes.

Tim smiled.

"Thanks for noticing," he said, almost inaudibly.

"I'm sorry we did not before," Ziva said. "You are a friend and friends should notice."

"Not if you've never seen anything else. I am happy now. Happier than I've been in a long time. I just feel...whole. I can't explain any better, but I feel like I'm a complete person and it's so different that I can't even imagine hiding it. I'm...ecstatic," he said and laughed. "I know it's different and I know that it probably even seems weird, but I really am happy. I really am not taking anything to make me feel this way. And I'm not mad at you for wondering now and not wondering before."

They finished their drinks and stood up. Ziva hugged Tim tightly.

"I am sorry that you were not happy before, and I am glad that you _are_ happy now."

"I was happy before. I just wasn't completely happy. Now, I'm completely happy. I don't know how long it will last, but I'm going to enjoy it while it does."

Ziva let him go and smiled.

"Then, we will try not to stomp all over your happiness."

"I'd appreciate that," he said, grinning.

They all took taxis home. They hadn't had a _lot_ to drink, but enough that they knew they shouldn't be driving. Why try to get around it? It meant a taxi to work the next morning, but that was tolerable.

Somehow, even though Tim hadn't really told them much, Tony felt better just knowing that he believed Tim when he said that he wasn't taking anything and that he was genuinely happy. He hated knowing that so much of Tim's life had been bereft of that, but now, it was better.

And he was hoping that Tim could keep hold of that for the rest of his life. Sure, no one was ever happy _all_ the time, but the possibility of being happy again was always there.

Tim deserved that much.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Over the next few months, Tim's joy didn't ebb, although he stopped looking as giddy. He seemed to adjust to his newfound happiness and he was simply more upbeat and more likely to smile than he had been. As he adjusted, so did everyone else and Tim's joy was no longer a topic of conversation. It was just the way he was.

There was another change, though, and this one had them all wondering a little bit, although not as much as might have been in other situations.

Tim spent a lot of weekends by himself. Instead of hanging out with any of them, he was more likely to be completely out of touch. When they asked him where he went, he just said that he was at the ocean. Was that all it was? Tony and Ziva, at least, were skeptical, but Tim didn't seem bothered at all. On the contrary, his happiness was always more obvious on Mondays, as if his time at the ocean had buoyed him up in a way.

Gibbs wasn't sure about Tim spending so much time alone at the ocean, but he reminded himself that Tim had lived this way for years before all this had happened. They couldn't spend the rest of their lives wondering if something else was going to happen to him, and Tim came back week after week, still happy, reporting nothing strange. All in all, it seemed like a positive event, not a negative, and Gibbs tried to think of it as that.

But his gut was telling him that there was more going on.

And, after four months of the new, happy normal, he was finally proven right.

Unfortunately.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tim came to work on Monday without the usual spring in his step. In fact, he seemed preoccupied all morning, only vaguely answering questions and sometimes seeming to be completely disconnected.

"What's up, Tim?" Tony asked. "Are you all right? Did something happen yesterday?"

Tim looked up, startled.

"What, Tony?"

"Is something wrong?"

Tim smiled and then shrugged. "I'm not sure yet. I'll let you know."

Tony glanced at Gibbs and then cocked his head to the side.

"Something might be?"

"Yeah, but I promise that I'll let you know."

"What happened?"

"Can you let me decide that first?"

"How long will it take you?" Tony asked, with a concerned smile.

"Not sure, but give me at least a day."

"Okay. But I'll start hounding you tomorrow. So you'd better be ready."

"I will be. Thanks."

Then, Tim turned back to his computer and ostensibly, got back to work. Gibbs watched him, though. He was positive that Tim was lying. He was sure and it wasn't good.

Still, there was work to do and Gibbs sent Ziva and Tony out to do some canvassing on a cold case, hoping that Tim might open up with fewer witnesses.

About halfway through the afternoon, Tim sat back, looked at Gibbs for a moment and then, seemed to come to a decision. He stood and walked over to Gibbs' desk.

"Boss, there's something I need to tell you."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow.

"Not here. I know this will sound strange, but I need to tell you at my apartment."

The eyebrow went up higher. Gibbs couldn't think of a single thing that Tim would need to tell him at his home.

"I promise, Boss. I know it's weird, but I promise that this is necessary."

"Okay. Let's go."

Tim looked relieved, but also a little conflicted, as if he wasn't sure this was the best idea. Still, he nodded and willingly went with Gibbs back to his apartment. Tim led Gibbs upstairs and inside.

"Okay, McGee. What is it?"

"Just wait here for a second," Tim said and hurried into his bedroom.

Gibbs stood there, completely confused. Tim came out with something in his hand.

"I can't just tell you. You have to see it to believe it. Even though you already know."

"See what?" Gibbs asked.

"This," Tim said.

Then, he swung the thing in his hand around him...

...and a seal was there in front of him. Gibbs felt his mouth open in shock and closed it quickly. Tim had turned into a seal. Right in front of him. It was one thing to _know_ that Tim was a selkie. It was quite another to have concrete evidence of it displayed before his eyes.

Then, while he watched, the seal stretched upward and there was Tim, standing there, looking shame-faced, with the seal skin in his hand.

"How long?" Gibbs asked, not knowing what else to say for the moment.

Tim's expression was earnest.

"I promise, Boss. You really did destroy my seal skin. That was real. I didn't lie about that."

"Then, where did _that_ come from?"

"It...grew back," Tim said.

"Grew back?"

Tim nodded.

"Your seal skin that we burned on a beach grew back."

"Yeah."

"How?"

"I have no idea, but it did." Tim stopped for a moment and then burst out. "I didn't know this would happen, Boss! _No_ one knew that this would happen! It's never been done before! No selkie has _ever_ survived having his skin destroyed. I'm the first one and the first one to do it on purpose. I don't know how. I don't know why."

"When?"

"You remember when I got sick and went to the hospital?"

"Were you faking?"

"No! What I think is that it took so much energy to regrow the skin that it sucked all the rest of my energy away. I really was wiped out by it. When my fever broke, I saw it starting to grow back and I just prayed that none of the hospital staff would see it."

"And you didn't tell anyone."

"I couldn't. I haven't told a single soul."

Gibbs looked at Tim for a moment and everything became clear. The reason for his sudden emotional upswing in the last few months, the reason for his occasional otherworldly appearance. He was truly a selkie again.

"So...why tell me?"

"Because...I'm in trouble, Boss," Tim said.

"So you _are_ sure."

Tim smiled a little and nodded. "Yeah. I couldn't exactly explain the reason for it at NCIS. I am sure."

"What happened?"

"Every weekend that I've had available, I've been going to the ocean and...swimming."

"As a seal."

Tim nodded. For some reason, the idea that Tim was enjoying time as a seal was far more mind-boggling than originally finding out that selkies existed. No matter what the facts were, Gibbs thought of Tim as human, choosing to ignore the complications of Tim's life so long as they didn't intrude into regular life. ...as it appeared they were about to do now.

"What happened?"

"The seals saw me and the selkies found out from them."

Gibbs raised his eyebrow again.

"The only reason I was allowed to stay here is because I destroyed my skin and I could never go back. Once it grew back, I should have abandoned my life here and returned to the sea. Forever. I didn't do that. I _can't _do that. I've lived too long in the human way to be able to go back to the selkies. But...I can't give up my skin again."

"Why not?"

"Because...I feel _whole_, Boss," Tim said, looking almost ready to cry. "The only reason I could give it up before was because I'd been living maimed for so long. Everything in my life was tainted by the fact that I was damaged, injured, in pieces. The idea of continuing on that track wasn't going to make things worse. But now, without ever expecting it, I've got what I always wanted to have and I _can't_ intentionally maim myself again. I can't do it. Boss, I don't know that I could survive it a second time, the loss on top of the pain. I can't. I can't give it up and I can't give up my life. So I've been trying to keep it a secret from everyone, human and selkie, so that I could live as I wanted to: a human who can also turn into a seal. Not a seal who can also turn into a human."

Tim seemed to run out of words for a few seconds, but Gibbs didn't know what to say. Not about this. So he said nothing.

"I can't even describe how amazing this has been for me. It's why I've been so happy. I'm healed from a wound I thought I'd always feel. That's what I have. But now..."

"Now?"

"Now..." Tim sighed. "There's only one penalty for breaking the laws."

Gibbs had heard that before and now he understood.

"They're going to kill you?"

Tim nodded.

"Couldn't you just stay away from the ocean?" Gibbs asked, but as he'd suspected, Tim was shaking his head before he'd even finished.

"No. I can't do that, either. Besides, they're selkies. They could come inland if they needed to."

"How do you know all this is going on? If they were going to kill you, wouldn't they just do it?"

"They're not near here. It takes time to travel this far south."

"Then, how... Your father."

Tim nodded.

"He'll protect you, won't he?"

"He promised my mother he would, but he can't stop the whole herd. And he has to obey the rules, too."

"You think your father would kill you?"

"If he thought it was necessary, yes."

Gibbs raised his eyebrow skeptically.

"Boss, remember. The selkies aren't the same as humans. They don't feel emotion for anything but the sea and, after what happened last year, they're much more wary about human interaction."

"Are you saying that you're going to give up?"

Tim shook his head, but he didn't look hopeful.

"No, but...I can't see any way out of this...unless I give up what I can't give up. I can't just stay away from the ocean. I can't give up my skin again. ...and I can't give up everything I've learned as a human."

"Will they give you a chance to speak for yourself?"

"I don't know. Maybe. Maybe not."

"How long do you have?"

"I don't know that, either. I was debating telling you at all, but...I decided that you should know. But I don't think there's anything you can do about it."

Gibbs was momentarily stymied. What _could_ he do? Tim was declaring that he would not give up what he now had, and if the feeling was an intense as he indicated, he could see that trying to convince him otherwise would be a miserable failure. Selkies could look like seals or like humans. Except for Tim's father, Gibbs didn't know what the selkies looked like, although he was sure that Tim probably did.

Even so, there was something he knew for sure.

"We're not letting this happen, Tim."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Tim had known that would be Gibbs' reaction. He would think that, if he said it, it would be true.

"I don't know that you'll have any say in it, Boss."

"I don't care," Gibbs said. "We'll find a way. You're not giving up."

"What are you possibly going to do?" Tim asked. "You can't keep me isolated from every living thing, human or seal, just in case. It's impossible. I mean, I know some of the selkies by sight, but not all of them. No, Boss. Eventually, they'll catch up to me and if I don't leave, they'll kill me."

"No," Gibbs said. "There has to be something."

"I just don't think there is. I was hoping that they'd never find out, but now that they have... It's only a matter of time."

"Will your father be coming?"

"I don't know. Probably. I didn't ask him. He just warned me. That's all."

"Ask him to help you."

Tim shook his head. "No. I can't do that. The selkies would be willing to kill him too, if they thought it was necessary."

"If I can't stop them, he could."

Tim shook his head again.

"No. I don't want someone else dying for me, and if I have to choose between death and living like I was, I'll choose death. Better to die than to have to give up everything I have."

Suddenly, Gibbs walked over to him and smacked him upside the head. Tim was shocked. He hadn't received a head slap in ages.

"No! You are _not_ going to passively give in just because you think that's the only choice, McGee! You are going to do everything you can to get out of this, to get what you want and what you deserve to have. You are not going to let them kill you. I will not stand by. Neither will anyone else. If your father does, he doesn't deserve to be called your father. If you don't promise to fight this, I will call your parents and your mother and anyone else who will make you feel guilty for not fighting."

"That's a low blow, Boss! You have no right to do that!" Tim protested. "I don't know why I even told you."

"You know why."

"Why?"

"Because you _want _someone to get you out of this."

Tim looked down at his skin. He couldn't resist almost hugging it. He figured it probably seemed strange to Gibbs, that all of this didn't really make much sense, but he still couldn't resist.

"I can't give this up, Boss," he whispered. "I would rather die than go through that again."

"Those aren't the only options unless you make it that way."

Tim was barely listening. "Selkies only feel love for the sea. They only feel grief if they lose their skin. I'm not restricted to that, but the intensity is greater than I think you know."

"Fight this, Tim," Gibbs said. "Don't give in to what they say."

"And how do I fight?"

"By doing whatever you can, instead of doing nothing."

"You know, it's funny," Tim said, not looking at Gibbs. Only at his skin. "I've lived most of my life at odds with one side or the other. A human woman I didn't even know tried to destroy me and almost succeeded, forcing me to be left behind. Then, in order to stay where I was and appease the selkies, I had to nearly kill myself. Then, a human man decided I was putting the human race in danger and he nearly killed me. Now, the selkies have decided I'm putting _them_ in danger and _they _want to kill me. And all I ever wanted was to feel happy and whole. And I have that now. I've been careful and I've kept it to myself, but even then, it's not enough to allow me to escape."

Finally, Tim felt like he could look up. He met Gibbs' gaze. And all the emotions he'd been feeling since his father had told him what was coming surged up and came out in one single, heartfelt declaration.

"I don't want to die."

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

_I don't want to die._

He cocked his head to the side at the sudden surge of emotion. It had not been from anyone close by. The selkie had found that, since the one called his son had regained his skin, he heard his thoughts much more often than he ever had before. He wondered what the selkies would think if they knew that he had concealed his awareness of his son's complete healing for so long. In fact, if he had known the seals had become aware of his son's activities, he would have tried to convince them to keep it to themselves. There had been no malice in it. The seals had simply been excited about a new/old playmate. The selkies had heard their chatter.

Now, he had to decide which promise he was going to keep. Did he keep the laws of the selkies or did he keep his promise to the woman who had borne his son, to protect him? Selkies never broke a promise. Never. But the few laws they had were expected to be kept at all costs. The laws were there to protect the herd.

Now, hearing his son's strongest emotions, he felt a sense of unease that he had never felt in all of his life, and he'd lived a long time. While selkies didn't keep track of time, they were aware of the passage of it, and he had lived for a long time.

Now, they would be coming to him and he would have to make a decision. Now. Not in a far-off future he didn't have to think about. The problem was that he had not yet figured out what was the right thing to do. He'd lived most of his life always knowing that he was making the right choice, because, in reality, there were few genuine choices to make. To not be sure now was uncomfortable and extremely unpleasant.

He came ashore, shedding his skin as he did so. Others did as well. The selkie who had returned built a fire so that it appeared that they were simply a group of humans enjoying a night on the beach. The one who had been born on land sat down beside the fire, digging his toes into the sand as he always did. The others sat down. For a long while all was silent. Then, they looked at him.

"We must take steps. The time has passed," said one.

"There is time still."

"He has his skin and he is not returning. The time has passed. There is only one punishment."

There were murmurs of agreement. They weren't excited or vengeful sounds. This was a necessity, not something desired.

"Allow me to speak to him."

"He knows the law. There is no reason to speak."

"What has happened to him has never happened before. This is not a situation the law contains."

"The law is broad enough for all situations."

"That is not true. Even those who made the laws knew that there would be situations that did not fit into the law."

"None survive who made the law. You do not know that."

The selkie shook his head. "You are wrong. I do know. No selkie can claim omniscience. Any who would are no better than the humans who believe only what they can see. We do not know everything that is or that was or that will be. We do not know what may come in the future. We barely give thought to the future. We live now. That is not wrong but shows that we cannot know what will come."

"This is not the reason for gathering," another said. "It is not necessary to determine the law. The law is. The one we speak of knows the law and has broken it. That requires punishment."

The selkie could see the intractability that led to such decisions. They knew the law and that was what mattered. This was not a transgression committed in ignorance. It was willful. He could admit it, but he could also see more than that.

And he could see that he would not convince them. So he prepared to lie. He didn't like lying. Humans lied with every breath it sometimes seemed. They even lied to themselves...and believed those lies. However, he had lied on occasion and he felt he was actually pretty good at it, mostly because the selkies did not lie as a rule. That made it easier to fool them.

"You all feel this way?"

There was a long pause as the selkies considered. Then, as he had thought, they all nodded.

"Very well. I will hold to the law. We will go."

"Will you?"

"I must," he said, without explanation.

Another nod. Then, without another word they all returned to the sea.

All but the selkie and two others.

It was the one who had returned and the one born on land. It was as if they had all chosen to remain behind for the same reason, although none spoke of it. The selkie looked at them.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Will you allow the one called your son to be killed?" the one who had returned asked.

"It is the law."

"That is not an answer," the land-born said.

"It is the only answer there can be."

"This is not right," said the one who had returned. "_You_ are right. What has happened to him has never happened before. Few ever are able to return. Most die. I would have if not for his actions. The law does not cover this."

The selkie looked at the land-born.

"I will listen," he said. "That is more than others. I understand the yearning for life on land. I feel it."

"You do?"

"Yes. Always. It is not the same as love for the sea, but it is something I feel and I have never lived on the land. He lived as a human longer than he lived as a selkie. That yearning is strong."

"There is still the law," the selkie said.

"Yes, and I follow it, but law does not fit with what has happened. It is _good _to know that it is possible to regrow a skin that has been destroyed. Perhaps some who would be lost do not need to be."

The selkie nodded, unwilling to commit himself even to those who appeared to support him. The two nodded as well and returned to the sea without another word, leaving the selkie alone. He stood where he was on the sand, staring out at the sea. He couldn't imagine leaving it permanently. It made sense to him that the one called his son couldn't stay away from the sea when the opportunity had come to get back. He was trying to have both.

The law forbade it, but he knew he was right that the law was not meant to have one meaning that applied to everything. The laws were necessarily few in number and strict in their enforcement, but in this case, the selkie _knew_ that they could not have anticipated this situation.

He knew because he _had_ lived a very long time. Longer than the other selkies understood. Few selkies survived to become old. It was a harsh life they lived, and in this modern age of ever more humans on the shores, it was difficult to become old as a selkie, not that they showed that age as humans did anyway. He had survived for so long that he sometimes wondered just how long he _would _live. None in this herd were as old as he. He knew the intentions behind the laws because he _had_ been there when they had been made. He had helped make them, a very long time ago. He didn't bring that up because the arguments should stand on their own, not because he was old.

_Is it time for the laws to change? Have we become too dependent on the laws without allowing for complications?_

It was not a new idea, but always, in the past, he had felt no real need to change the laws. It was mere curiosity, not true intent. But now...

Why did he think it necessary now? Had he become infected with the human thoughts of the woman who had called him from the sea? If so, they were likely not thoughts he should entertain.

And yet...

He himself was not fully a selkie. Many were not, when it came right down to it, especially the older selkies. He had been born in the sea, but the one who had borne him had told him of his human sire, of the one who had stolen her skin and hidden it to keep her on land with him, until she had found it and returned in time to give birth to her selkie child. She had not spoken of the humans with malice. Since she had returned, she had her first love, and she had a selkie child, always a benefit in human interactions. Selkies could mate with other selkies, but it was rare that offspring resulted. For whatever reason, it was difficult for selkies to mate and have young. It was much easier to use humans for that.

Perhaps the thoughts had always been there, just not as loud as they were at the moment. Perhaps it was the time and effort he had given to protecting this one. He had never focused so intently on one of his offspring, and he had many. All were raised by the herd. All were cared for. That was never in question. He simply had never paid that much attention before. He had never been asked to do so. All this was so different from his experiences in the past.

...which was why he made a dangerous decision.

Instead of returning to the sea with the herd, he turned his attention to the road and began to run, knowing that he could beat them.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"You have to tell the others, Tim," Gibbs said.

"No!" Tim said, instantly.

"And what will they think if you show up dead?"

"I don't want them to know," Tim said.

"Why not?"

"Because! Because...I..." Tim suddenly stopped speaking.

"Why not?" Gibbs asked again.

"Because it's dangerous to trust humans," Tim said and laughed softly. "It's funny. The answer is so automatic. I know you already know. I know _they _already know, but the automatic answer is_ right there_. I can't trust humans...even though I have and I know I can. But especially after last year. He made me afraid of humans again."

"All humans?"

"No. I'm not afraid of you. Not when I think about it."

"You have to tell them, Tim. They've been with you all through this. Don't change that now."

"And _show_ them?" Tim asked.

"Yes."

Tim licked his lips nervously and then nodded.

"Good. Let's go."

"Where?"

"Not enough room for everyone here."

Tim chuckled, again, showing his nervousness.

"They already know."

"There's a difference between knowing in your head and seeing it, Boss."

"Then, let them see it."

"Okay."

"Let's go."

"Okay."

Tim didn't move. Gibbs chuckled.

"Now, McGee."

Tim reddened and nodded. He picked up a bag and then reverently put his skin inside. He swallowed and then followed Gibbs out of the apartment. They'd have to wait until there was time to get everyone there, but still...

Soon, they'd all know.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tony looked at Ziva.

"Do you know why we're going to Gibbs' place in the middle of a work day? And where McGee is?"

"He must be with Gibbs," Ziva said. "This must be about him. That is why we all are coming."

Tony nodded and looked back at the other cars behind them.

"McGee almost as good as said he was in trouble, but I can't figure out what it would be about. He's had his selkie meltdown. He had a human attacking him last year. What else can happen?"

"I am sure something that we have not thought of will have happened," Ziva said. "We would not have predicted any of it."

"True." Tony sighed. "I guess that's what happens when supernatural stuff becomes real."

"Or when it has always _been_ real and you just did not know it."

"Yeah. That's even worse."

They drove the rest of the way in relative silence, wondering what could be going on.

"Here we are," Tony said.

"Yes, I have been here before, Tony. I know where Gibbs lives."

Tony grinned and got out of the car as soon as it stopped. He got to the front door just steps ahead of Abby who was nearly sprinting, hampered slightly by her platform shoes.

"Do you know what's going on?" Abby asked.

"Not a clue, Abby," Tony said. "I'm guessing we'll find out when we get down to the basement."

"Where else?" Abby said, smiling.

They all hurried down to the basement, Ducky and Jimmy a little bit behind. When they got down there, Tim and Gibbs were both there. Tim looked extremely self-conscious.

"What's up?" Tony asked.

Gibbs looked at Tim and raised an eyebrow. He took a deep breath and nodded.

"I have...something to tell you... or show you," he said.

"What?" Ziva asked. "And why here?"

"You'll understand in a second," Tim said.

He stared at them awkwardly for a moment.

"Go on, McGee," Gibbs said.

"Right."

Tim turned around and opened a bag. He hesitated and then pulled something out of it. Then, he turned back.

"Please...don't scream or anything," he said. "It'll just make this even more awkward."

"Scream?" Tony said. "What do you–?"

As he spoke, Tim swung a gray mass around him...

...and he turned into a seal. The seal that had been Tim sat there, staring at them. They all stared back in silence.

Abby's mouth fell open and then, predictably, she squealed with shock and excitement.

"Tim! You're a seal! How? What? When?"

The seal stretched upward and then, Tim was removing the skin and staring at them in clear embarrassment. Abby had always been more fascinated than unsettled by Tim being a selkie, and that carried over into when they actually _saw_ Tim being a selkie. It was one thing to know and another thing to see. Tony wasn't sure what to make of it, but Abby was.

She ran over to Tim and hugged him and began talking a mile a minute about everything that this was, not giving Tim a chance to talk, until finally, Gibbs intervened.

"Abby. Quiet," Gibbs said.

Abby grinned and stopped talking, leaving a very noisy silence in her wake.

"Timothy, how did this happen? Where did this skin come from? We destroyed it," Ducky said, more curious than anything.

"You did destroy it," Tim said. "It...grew back."

"It grew back?" Ziva repeated. "How is that possible? Neither humans nor seals grow back missing parts."

"But skin can grow back," Tim said. "But I really don't know. I have no idea how this happened. I didn't expect it. It took me by surprise. Actually..."

Suddenly, somehow, it all clicked for Tony. "That's what was going on when you got sick!" he said.

Tim looked at him and nodded. "But I promise that I really did feel as bad as it seemed I did. I told Gibbs. I think that growing my skin back took more energy than I had. It took a few days to grow back completely, and now that I have it, I can't let it go."

"Why is that a problem?" Jimmy asked. "You're acting like someone thinks you should, but I can't imagine any of _us _saying so."

"Not after we saw what destroying it the first time did to you," Ziva said.

"It's not you."

"Then, who?" Tony asked. "The selkies?"

Tim nodded.

"Why?"

"Because the rule is that you have to leave your human life behind if you get your skin back. I can't leave this behind. But I can't give up being whole again. When I told you that I felt whole for the first time, I was telling the truth. I had forgotten how amazing it felt to be whole, to be healed. I can't deliberately go back to being maimed. But the selkies found out and... and there's only one punishment."

"Are you saying that they would kill you, Timothy?" Ducky asked.

"Yes."

"Surely, your father..."

"He's the one who warned me that they knew, but he has to hold to the law just like anyone else."

"But after all that he did last time," Tony said.

"After all that, he'll probably think that he's done what was required. This time, I've violated one of the few laws the selkies have. Last time, I'd done nothing wrong."

"You haven't done anything wrong this time, either," Abby said, indignantly. "It's not fair that they would force you to choose, especially when you're not endangering them if you're not going back to the herd at all. How were you supposed to know that this would happen if it's never happened before?"

"I know, but the law is the law, Abby," Tim said.

Tony could see that Tim agreed with her, but that he also understood the selkies' perspective. He was pulled in both directions and that wasn't right either.

"We can't let this happen. What if we did...something...I don't know."

Tim shook his head quickly. "Please, don't threaten them, Tony. I promise that it would _not _do what you want it to do. Remember that the selkies don't look on justice or life the same way humans do. If they felt that you were a risk, they'd kill you and anyone else just to protect themselves. Then, they'd probably try to migrate somewhere else. Their one goal is survival, and they deserve to survive. You know what would happen if humans knew we existed and yes, I'm part of that, especially now."

"They don't deserve to do this to you," Tony said.

"You think that because you can't think like a selkie," Tim said. "When a male lion takes over the pride, often, he'll kill all the babies that came from the previous leader because his goal is to reproduce and he has no connection to those cubs. We don't look at a lion and judge him based on what humans do. You can't look at a selkie and judge a selkie by what humans do, even if we look like humans. We're not human. I'm more human than most selkies are, but I'm still not human."

"So you're saying that you'll let them kill you? That it's the right thing to do? Well, that's stupid, Tim, and we're not going to sit back and let them."

"I'm not saying that it's right. I'm saying that I understand it, that I can see why this is their response and why I don't expect my father to do anything about it."

Then, suddenly, Tim stopped talking and began to look around. He took a couple of steps toward the stairs.

"What's going on, Tim?" Tony asked.

"It couldn't be..." Tim whispered.

"Couldn't be what? What's going on?" Abby asked.

Tim didn't answer. He started walking up the stairs. Abby looked at everyone else and then ran over and grabbed Tim by the arm.

"Tim! Stop! Where are you going?" she asked.

Tim stopped moving and looked at her, as if he was surprised she was even there. Tony could see the selkie in him more at that moment than any other. He wasn't quite in the same place.

"He's here," Tim said, finally.

Then, he went up the stairs. Tony waited for only a second and then ran up after him. He heard the thumping that indicated everyone else was following, too, but he was keeping his eye on Tim, just in case something else weird was happening. One never knew with Tim. Not anymore.

_Really, not ever. We just didn't realize it,_ Tony thought to himself.

Tim opened the door and, to Tony's surprise, there was a man standing there.

No, not a man.

"You!" he said, shocked to the core. Then, he felt embarrassed at reacting that way, and embarrassed that he had nothing else to call him but _you_.

Tim's father was standing on Gibbs' front porch.

"May I enter?" he asked.

Tim stood back, without speaking, and the selkie walked inside. He had clearly been in human form long enough to adjust to it because he walked without any hesitancy. And Tony could see Tim in him.

"Why are you here?" Tim asked.

"They are coming," the selkie said.

"I know."

"You all know," the selkie said, looking at the others.

"Yes," Abby said. "But Tim hadn't said anything until _you_ decided he had to die for it. He wouldn't ever have told us, otherwise."

"Are you able to see into the future?" the selkie asked her. "This is not a trait humans have."

"No, but..."

Tim sighed. "No, Abby, he's right. It's easy to say I wouldn't have told anyone, but I might have at some point."

"And yet, you hadn't, Timothy," Ducky said, looking at the selkie. "We were all taken completely by surprise at the revelation. Are you here to punish him?"

"No," the selkie said. "But they will, and they will come. They will know that I have come here."

"How?" Tim asked.

The selkie smiled, and somehow, Tony got the feeling that the selkie was not as much in control of the situation as he appeared.

"Because it is easy to conclude this action, even if it makes no sense. They know that I have little reason to leave the herd, but I have left before...for you." The selkie looked at Gibbs, obviously knowing who was in charge. "I promise I have no ill intentions. May I speak to this one alone?"

Gibbs raised an eyebrow at the request. Tony would love to know what he was thinking. Tony was thinking that it seemed like a bad idea, given that they knew the selkie had killed before. However, he had also done a lot to help Tim in the past and he _claimed_ that he wasn't here to do anything to Tim.

A moment of silence and then, Gibbs looked at Tim.

"Up to you, McGee," he said.

Tim nodded.

"Can we go to the basement?" he asked.

"We'll stay up here," Abby said. "But if you try anything..."

Tim and the selkie both smiled, in exactly the same way.

"He won't try anything," Tim said.

"I will not try anything," the selkie said, at exactly the same time.

Then, they left the room.

"What are we going to do, Gibbs?" Abby asked, plaintively. "We can't just let the selkies kill him! But Tim won't stay away from the ocean. He can't! We have to do something!"

"Like what, though?" Jimmy asked. "Tim didn't seem to think there were many options. Would they give him a trial?"

"I don't know anything about what judicial structure the selkies might or might not have," Ducky said. "This is far beyond my experience. Perhaps that is part of the reason Timothy's father has come. To offer his help."

"We will _not_ let Tim be killed by the selkies," Ziva said, darkly. "If they try, I will not be content to threaten."

"I'll help," Tony said. "Tim's been happy these last few months. No one has the right to take that away from him."

"But will it be up to us?" Abby asked, sounding very worried.

"It's not right now," Gibbs said. "It's up to them."

And all they could do was wait.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Tim led his father down into the basement, and he watched as his father looked around curiously.

"This man builds boats in this small space?" he asked.

"Yes," Tim said. "He has for years."

The selkie looked around again and his brow furrowed.

"I see no way for them to get out."

Tim smiled. It figured that even a selkie would be flummoxed by Gibbs and his mysterious boats.

"No one does, but Gibbs manages it somehow."

The selkie nodded once and then refocused.

"I am sorry," he said.

"Sorry? You are? Why?" Tim asked.

The selkie smiled. "Because I am responsible for the law that has you bound."

"But I thought that the law was always there."

"On land, men make laws. They do not appear out of nowhere," the selkie said. "It is the same for selkies."

"But that must have happened a long time ago."

"Yes."

"How...old _are_ you?"

"I do not know how to answer that question. I have lived for a long time. Longer than any other selkie."

"In the herd?"

"Longer than any other selkie," he said again. "Any other selkie who now lives. The one who bore me had been trapped on land by a human man but she escaped to return to the sea. As I grew, I survived while others died. The herd grew larger. Some of us left our original space and came to these waters. And I had lived longer. I and others who had lived long made laws to help us in these new waters. Only I remain of those who made the laws."

"You carry your age very well," Tim said, smiling a little.

And it was true. He might guess the selkie to be in his fifties, but no older than that. And yet, his mother had said that he hadn't changed in appearance in the thirty odd years it had been since she'd last seen him.

"Selkies do not... _age_. We grow and die."

Tim nodded.

"But you must not die at the hands of the herd."

It was said so calmly that Tim almost missed it.

"I know the law," Tim said. "You have to obey it."

"Unless that law is changed."

"How will you get them to change the law?"

"By forcing the herd to think. We live by tradition because it must be successful if it has lasted. We are saved by the law, but we should not be slaves to that law. I never intended the law to become hard as rock. The law was made, but it was made to be soft enough to change the shape if it became necessary. There are too many who make it rock, who make the law more important than the herd. The herd must survive, but _you_ are a part of that herd. The herd does not exist without the selkies making it up."

"Will they listen?" Tim asked, trying to keep his focus where it needed to be and not on all the revelations he'd just had in the last few minutes.

"I do not know. Two have already listened, but two among many is not many."

"I don't want anyone to die for me, especially not you," Tim said.

"I do not wish to die for you," the selkie said.

Tim smiled. That was such a selkie thing to say. It was something that humans wouldn't understand. He was being honest in a way that many humans were not.

"Good. I'm glad we agree on that much. Will they give me a chance or will I just be killed?"

"I do not think they want to give you a chance, but I think that there may be enough to listen who will."

"I get it. They're afraid."

"No. We do not feel human emotions."

"That's a lie," Tim said. "Even you are partly human. You just said so. Most selkies probably have some human genes, so they have the capacity for emotions. You don't pursue them, and I get that. I'm not saying you have to, but the selkies are afraid of being discovered. And what happened last year only made the fear more real. You're not _used_ to it, and it's making the herd react much more strongly than they might have a few years ago."

The selkie was quiet and then he nodded.

"You may be correct. Perhaps it is fear. Whether you are right or not, the problem remains of what we will do to keep them from allowing that fear to control them."

"Are you sure that you want to be involved in this?"

"I must be. There is no choice."

"Why not?"

"Because I promised the one you call your mother that I would always watch out for you. She required that promise of me when she gave you to the herd. I promised her. Because of that, I must be part of whatever happens to you. A selkie cannot break a promise and be what he is. That is why I have left the herd. If it was simply a matter of proposing a change in the law, I would do that with the herd. In this case, I must help you regardless of what the herd does."

"What if that leads to...violence?"

"Then, that must be. I do not wish it, but I will not resist it. I will fight to survive as I always have and I will fight to protect you if I must. They will be forced to understand."

"But how?"

"That is the question we must ask and answer very quickly," the selkie said. "If we do not, it will be too late make a decision."

"How much time do you think we have?"

"The time it takes for the fire in the sky to return twice, but no more. Perhaps less."

"That's not much time. How did _you_ get down here so fast?"

"I believe it is called a car."

"You _drove_? You know how to drive?"

The selkie smiled. "I observed those you are with when we sought you out. It was simple."

"How did you get a car?"

"It was called a rental, I believe."

"But how... Nevermind." Trying to get at exactly how his father had managed to get hold of a car and drive it all the way down the coast without killing himself or anyone else was beside the point. "Will you try to keep my friends out of it?"

"Do you think they will allow that? I am doubtful."

"So am I."

"Then, it would be a waste of this time to try to stop them."

"Then, they should be in on it from the beginning."

"You wish their help to plan?"

"Yes."

The selkie quietly considered that for a few minutes. Tim was feeling more than a little antsy, but at the same time, he knew that the selkie was having to think very differently from how selkies generally thought. He himself had realized just how firmly ingrained the idea of avoiding human contact was, even after 20 years on land. And who knew just how old his father was?

"Very well," the selkie said, finally. "More of them means more to fight if it comes to that."

"I hope it doesn't," Tim said.

"As do I, but it is best to be ready. We should go now and join them."

"Okay."

They climbed the stairs and went back out to the living room.

"Well?" Tony asked.

"They will be coming," Tim said. "And..." He paused, still surprised at what his father had said.

"And I will not allow this one to be killed by the herd."

"So what do we do, then?" Abby asked.

"That's what we need to figure out and soon," Tim said. "And preferably without anyone having to die."

"Including you," Gibbs said.

"Including me," Tim said.

"Good. Just as long as that's clear," Tony said.

"It is."

"Will it come down to a fight?" Ducky asked.

"It is possible, but they will not want that," the selkie said. "Too many human deaths will lead to questions, and humans should not know about it in the first place."

"Does that mean us being there will make it worse, then?" Jimmy asked.

"It is possible, but you are known to be aware of our existence. That is not new information."

"Do you have any ideas?" Ducky asked.

The selkie shook his head. "This is nothing that has ever happened before. Nothing about this is something that has been experienced. Thus, I do not know what will work and what will not."

"Will they come inland?" Tony asked.

"Not all of them. It is much more likely that they will come here and wait for news that this one has gone to the sea."

"So we will have to go to them," Ziva said. "I do not like that idea. It is their advantage."

"It is mine as well," the selkie said, mildly. "And this one is also having an advantage, although he is young."

"He's not that young. He's in his thirties," Abby said.

"What does this mean?" the selkie asked.

"Abby, my dad is lot older than I would have thought," Tim interjected.

"How much older?"

"I don't know, but way older. Compared to him, I _am_ young."

Abby got a curious expression on her face, and Tim knew she was seconds away from trying to grill the selkie to find out just how old he was.

"Regardless, advantage or not, we should focus on how we might be able to avoid putting anyone's fighting skills to the test," Ducky said, pulling the attention away from the selkie's age back to the issue at hand.

"It is good to be prepared to fight," the selkie said. "That is sometimes the only answer."

"I agree, but with the exception of myself, everyone in this room is prepared to fight to survive."

"You do not wish to survive?" the selkie asked. "Then, why do you live?"

Tim shook his head.

"We're getting off topic here, I think," he said. "If we're going to do this, we'll have to be prepared to go to the beach to do it. They won't come here."

"Yes, and they will come soon."

"Then, what do we do?" Abby asked. "Tim, you've been so happy and that can't stop. I don't want you to go back to what you were like before!"

Abby hugged him tightly and Tim smiled.

"That won't happen, Abby. No matter what else, that will never happen. I couldn't go through that again and survive it."

"And you should not," the selkie said. "It was much to ask one time, more than any other selkie could do. That you did it one time speaks to your strength."

Abby let him go and smiled but it was a worried smile because, Tim knew, she had heard the unspoken meaning to what he said.

_I would rather die._

He didn't have to say it, although maybe he should, but he didn't want to give that additional distraction. It was one thing to say it to Gibbs. It was another to say it to everyone.

"If we will not come in force," Ziva said, "how will we stop this from happening?"

"We need to make them listen," Tim said. "I'm just not sure what is the best way to do that."

"Then, let's talk about that," Gibbs said, taking charge.

They began to discuss what they could do to get Tim free of the selkies. Tim said little. The selkie said little, but they were all there with the same goal.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

It was late in the evening and everyone had finally gone home. Well, _almost_ everyone. Gibbs had decided that Tim was not going to be alone in his apartment until they figured this out. The selkie was also staying close by. Currently, he was in the bathtub, in his seal form, trying to listen for any whispers of how far away the selkies were from D.C.

No decisions had been made, no plans really formed at this point, but they were currently trying to figure out some way to get Tim to the sea but keep him surrounded until the selkies could be forced to listen to reason. Would it work? Who knew? Even though they'd lived with the idea of Tim being a selkie for more than a year, they knew next to nothing about the selkies themselves.

Now, Gibbs sat in the living room, looking out to the backyard where Tim was sitting, holding his own seal skin.

His seal skin.

Gibbs found that he was still a bit boggled by the realization that his agent was truly able to turn into a seal if he wanted to. He was also more than a little surprised that Tim had genuinely been able to hide this as long as he had. Months. He hadn't been able to hide his happiness, but no one had made the connection and for good reason.

Who could have imagined that Tim would be able to regrow his destroyed seal skin?

Even Tim hadn't known. His father hadn't known. No one had known.

So, even beyond the next couple of days, what now?

Finally, Gibbs got up and walked out to the back steps where Tim was sitting. He sat down beside Tim.

For a long time, there was just silence. Then, still without speaking or making eye contact, Tim held out his skin. Gibbs hesitated for a moment. Then, he reached out and touched it. It was supple and smooth. And alive. This wasn't leather or suede or any other type of dead animal hide. It was a real thing that was still living. The reality of this was becoming more and more cemented in Gibbs' head.

Tim was a selkie. He could turn into a seal.

Gibbs knew that Abby would want to figure out how all this worked scientifically, but Gibbs didn't care about that. He cared that this could truly alter how things worked on the MCRT.

Tim pulled the skin back and began to stroke it, almost lovingly. Still no words being said. They weren't really necessary. Gibbs could see that Tim's attachment to his seal skin was genuine. He had said it made him whole, and the more Gibbs saw him with it, the more he understood how accurate that description was. Tim _was_ whole. No one had realized it simply because they'd never seen him that way before. Now that they had, it was almost painful to know how long Tim had lived without that feeling.

Then, finally, Tim sighed, still looking at his skin, not at Gibbs.

"All I want is to be happy, Boss. Why is that wrong? Why can't they just let me be happy for once in my life?"

Gibbs didn't say anything. It wasn't really a question that was supposed to be answered. Not right at this moment.

"The selkies are stealing my life from me just as much as that woman did when she took my skin. They're trying to destroy me, not because of anything I've actually done but because of what others have done in the past. Yes, I broke the law, but it's because of the fear they have of humans that this is their response. I nearly died last year, trying to protect them. Why would they think I'd betray them now?"

Another question not really wanting an answer. So Gibbs didn't answer it. He just sat where he was and listened.

"It's like I've been rejected by both sides."

_That_ required a response.

"No, you haven't."

"It feels like it. You know what humans would do if they found out what I am. The selkies want to kill me. Is there anyplace that's safe?"

"Yes. We'll figure this out."

"In time?"

"Yes."

That had to be the answer, even if Gibbs had no idea if things would work out or not. The answer _had_ to be yes.

The door opened and Gibbs turned. Tim didn't. Gibbs didn't know if it was because Tim knew who it was or if he just was too wrapped up in everything to care.

It was the selkie. His expression was grave.

"They will be here tomorrow. By tomorrow night, we must know what we will do. If we do not, the herd will decide for us."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The next morning was quiet, but tense. Gibbs was taking a personal day, as was Tim, but the rest of the team would go to work as usual to keep things from being suspicious. Hopefully. At the same time, Gibbs, Tim and the selkie would try to make some sort of plan.

Tim had not slept much during the night, thinking about the coming confrontation, what he'd do, what the selkies would do, would anyone be hurt, could he somehow stop all this from happening... And now, he was in the basement, staring at Gibbs' latest boat, thinking about how he had always hated being on boats, how they had always made him feel ill because it was such an unnatural way to be on the water.

He was continually at odds with one side of his heritage or another and it wasn't fair. He had no plans to harm humans _or_ selkies, but both had been (or were currently) ready to have him killed because they believed he did. Tim was angry about it and when it was clear that it was based on nothing more than fear, he didn't want to have to deal with this kind of thing.

"Have you thought of anything besides anger?"

Tim looked up to the top of the stairs at his father.

"No," he admitted. "The anger keeps getting in the way."

"Perhaps it would be better to set it aside until a plan has been made."

The selkie came down the stairs and looked at him silently.

"It might be, but I'm not sure I can manage it. I know it's childish to say, even for selkies, but this isn't fair."

"It is not right, I agree."

There was a long silence. Conversation wasn't always needed. Sometimes, silence spoke more eloquently than words did.

"Can you set that aside long enough to think?" the selkie said.

"Maybe. Why? Have you thought of something?"

"I am not sure the humans will agree."

"What is it?"

"I do not think the selkies will reveal themselves if the humans are present. That means that we will simply be delaying what should not be delayed if they are seen."

"I don't like the odds of the two of us against the herd," Tim said.

"Nor do I, but it may be necessary until we can get them to show themselves."

"What if they do decide just to kill me and get it over with?" Tim asked. "If they're as determined as you say..."

"They will have to kill me first and I assure you that it will not be easy to do."

"I don't like that idea," Tim said, and he meant it. It was one thing to have his father watching out for him, but literally fighting for him was another matter all together.

"If you have another one, please tell me."

The worst of it was that Tim didn't. He understood what the selkie was saying and he agreed that he was probably right. It was just that it seemed very dangerous.

"I don't."

"Then, instead of wasting our time with not liking it, accept it and we will plan how to make it be successful."

Tim nodded reluctantly.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tony desperately hoped that Vance wouldn't clue into the fact that Gibbs and Tim were gone. They had done the official day off through HR, but it was hard to know how Vance would take it if he realized that, yet again, Tim was gone for something unexpected. They all knew that he had turned a blind eye to the fact that there was something being deliberately kept from him. They all knew he didn't like it but that he was accepting it.

This could upset that delicate balance, even if Tim got out of the more serious situation of his life being on the line.

"What if Vance notices?" Ziva asked, her voice low.

"I don't know," Tony said. "We'll just have to hope that he doesn't."

"Maybe he should be told, now."

Tony shook his head.

"No. Vance is in a bad position. He has to report to higher-ups. We don't want to force him into that situation," Tony said.

And besides that, who knew how Vance would react to knowing that Tim was a selkie? Even thinking about it still threw Tony for a loop. The idea that in this world there was a person who was literally of a different species working with them and that they'd not known that until just a year ago. The weirdest thing was that the rest of the world went on as usual, not knowing that it was as crazy as it was and sometimes the disconnect was really obvious.

Ziva nodded reluctantly, and they got to work. They didn't have an active case going on right now, thankfully, but they could keep working on the cold case and hope that Vance wouldn't notice that Tim and Gibbs were actually gone instead of just not being in the bullpen when he looked down.

And also hope that Tim and Gibbs would figure something out while they were working.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

"No," Gibbs said.

"Boss," Tim said, "it's probably the only way to get this over with."

"No, Tim. We're not going to leave you and your father to face the selkies alone."

"It would not be that way for long," the selkie said. "But if you are there, they will sense you and they will not come out. They can wait for as long as is necessary. If you are far away..."

"How far?"

Tim looked at the selkie as if he knew what the reaction was going to be before he said it.

"It would have to be a few miles, Boss," Tim said. "They can sense humans but they also know that humans are everywhere, so they keep aware of the ones close by. And they've sensed you before. To make sure that they don't, you'll have to be far enough away that they don't realize they need to pay attention. They won't think to look for you, and even if they do, they won't sense you because you won't be right there."

Gibbs shook his head. "No. I've seen how fast they can move, Tim. If you're typical," he said, looking at the selkie.

"I am, perhaps, faster than others, but yes."

"Then, no," he said again.

"But, Boss..."

"No," the selkie said, unexpectedly. "If you wish us to think of something else, it does no good to waste time arguing. We will return to our considerations."

Tim was surprised and very skeptical. He didn't know if Gibbs was, but he knew _he_ was. It wasn't exactly common for his father do show any willingness to change what he had decided was the right course of action.

Then, Gibbs' phone rang. He looked at Tim with a warning in his expression and then answered.

"Gibbs." He listened for a few seconds and then walked a few steps away and began speaking in a low voice.

As soon as Gibbs' attention was diverted, the selkie looked at Tim. He didn't need words. Tim understood.

_I don't want to do that,_ he said in his mind.

_There is no choice. We do not have time to make a second plan and this one will work._

_If we leave right now, Gibbs will know and just follow right behind._

_Only if he realizes we are gone._

_What?_

_I have not done this for a long time but I am sure I remember._

Then, the selkie focused his attention on Gibbs and stared intently at him. Gibbs continued to talk on the phone.

"What are you–?" Tim began.

"Quiet."

Suddenly, Gibbs stopped talking and stood still.

"We will go. That will not hold him forever," the selkie said.

"What did you do?" Tim asked, more than a little shocked.

"I stopped him."

"Stopped him?"

"Yes. Not many can do it and it is not something we do even when we can. It is no longer taught. It is only for times when it is needed. Like now. We will go. When he wakes, he will come after us with your friends and it may be that it will be exactly when they need to be there."

Tim didn't like to leave Gibbs looking like he was frozen in place. It was like he was a video that had been paused. It was like he'd allowed Gibbs to be attacked and was leaving him damaged and alone.

"Come," the selkie said.

Reluctantly, Tim nodded and followed the selkie out of the house.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

"Boss? Boss?" Tony repeated.

He looked at Ziva...and then at Vance who was standing there, staring inquisitively. It was a dangerous expression on Vance's face. He wasn't generally merely inquisitive.

"He's not saying anything. He's breathing into the phone but..."

Vance held out his hand, and Tony reluctantly handed the phone over. Vance held it up to his ear and listened.

"Agent Gibbs?"

He listened again. Then, he passed it back to Tony.

"I'm going to ask you one question, Agent DiNozzo. Then, you can go check on Gibbs."

"Yes, Director?" Tony asked, a little worried about what this question was going to be.

"Does the absence of Agent Gibbs and Agent McGee have anything to do with the events of last year?"

Tony glanced at Ziva again. This was exactly what he'd been hoping would _not_ happen, but it had, and now, Gibbs couldn't even give them any advice...for whatever reason. He really wanted to get over there to find out what was going on. But he could tell that lying would be a really bad idea at the moment.

"Well, Agent DiNozzo?"

Ziva just shrugged imperceptibly. She was leaving it up to him.

Unfortunately.

"Sort of."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning that explaining it all would take way too long and I don't think you could believe it if I told you."

"Believe it?"

"Yes. Please, Director. We need to go, but we'll explain. We really will...when we can," Tony said, hoping that he wasn't lying because he knew Vance wouldn't take that very well.

Vance stood there, staring at them, his expression unreadable. Tony looked at Ziva again. She was waiting silently.

"Go, Agent DiNozzo."

Then, Vance walked away from them. Tony was surprised enough that he just sat there for a moment.

"Tony, we should go before he changes his mind," Ziva said.

"Right."

They grabbed their things and ran out of the building. On the way over to Gibbs' place, Ziva tried calling Tim, but it went to voice mail. That made them more worried than they'd been before.

They got to Gibbs' house and ran inside. Tony saw Gibbs standing with his back to them.

"Boss, why did you stop talking?" Tony asked. "Where's Tim?"

There was no response. Tony looked at Ziva.

"Boss?"

They walked over to Gibbs. He was standing motionless, phone in hand. But he didn't have a blank expression or anything. It was like he had stopped mid-sentence.

Ziva grabbed his arm.

"Gibbs!"

As soon as she did, Gibbs started to talk again.

"...but you probably can't..." he trailed off as he realized that Tony and Ziva were standing there.

"Boss?" Tony asked. "You okay? What happened?"

Gibbs looked around and then, he looked at Tony and Ziva. Then, finally, he looked down at his watch and grimaced.

"Boss!"

"Did you see McGee?"

"No," Ziva said. "You are the only one here."

Gibbs swore, looked at his phone and dialed. He was clearly listening to the phone ring. Then, Tony heard the faint sound of Tim's voice mail.

"McGee, you'd better call me back," Gibbs said. He sounded furious...and worried.

Then, he hung up.

"Vance?" he asked.

"We're going to have to tell him, Boss," Tony said. "He let us go, but he's not going to let us talk around it this time."

"Yeah."

"Where's McGee?"

"On his way to the ocean."

"What? Why?" Ziva asked. "Is that not the worst place for him right now?"

"Yeah. The selkie decided that we couldn't be there because the selkies would know and they wouldn't show themselves," Gibbs said, still sounding very irritated.

"But if they show themselves, it would likely be to kill Tim."

"Yeah."

"Then, we should go after them," Tony said. "Even if we don't know exactly where they are, we'll be closer if we head that direction."

Gibbs nodded and they ran out the door, intent on catching up before it was too late.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Tim winced as he listened to his voice mail message from Gibbs. Short as it was, he sounded infuriated...and Tim had to admit that Gibbs had good reason to feel that way. He sat there quietly for a few seconds and spared a thought to wonder at the fact that he was actually letting the selkie drive...and it was even stranger that the selkie was doing it well.

He couldn't think about it for very long, though. The selkie brought his mind back onto the message.

"He is angry?"

"I told you he would be," Tim said. "He probably thinks I betrayed him."

"You did not. I did that."

"That won't matter. He's still mad at me."

The selkie smiled.

"Good."

"Why good?"

"Because he will follow us quickly and we now know that he will. You should tell him where we are going."

"Yeah. If he lets me get a word in edgewise."

"I have not seen him speak much."

"True."

Tim didn't want to make this call, but he knew the selkie was right. If he had a chance of surviving what they were about to do, they'd need backup, and he knew that Gibbs would be even more upset if he didn't get the chance to do his part.

He took a deep breath and dialed, bracing himself for a lecture.

"_McGee, what in the world is wrong with you?"_

"Hi, Boss."

"_What did you do to me?"_

"It wasn't me."

"_You didn't stop him."_

"I wouldn't even know _how_. I don't know exactly what he did and I didn't know he was going to do it." Tim hesitated. "...but, Boss, you've got to know that he was right."

"_Right? To attack me?"_

"No. Right that you couldn't be there and have this work. We tried to convince you, but you wouldn't listen. So we had to go without you knowing, even if we need your help later."

"_What if we just gave up on you right now?"_

That hurt and Tim winced.

"I hope you aren't going to do that," he said, keeping his voice low. He didn't want either his boss or his father to know how much that had hurt.

There was a long silence, just long enough that Tim almost gave up and ended the conversation. In fact, he started to say that they could just forget it and he'd just manage.

"Ne–"

"_Where are you?"_

"On our way to the beach," Tim said.

"_Which one?"_

"The same one where you burned my skin before," Tim said and shivered at the memory, holding his skin more closely than before.

"_Would you wait if I told you to?"_

"No. Boss, I didn't like leaving you there, but I knew we had to." Tim paused. "...are you coming?"

Another pause.

"_Of course we are, McGee."_

"Then, I'll see you at the beach."

"_Be careful."_

"I will."

Tim hung up.

"They are coming?"

"Yeah."

"Good."

"What if they don't get there in time?"

"I have something I can do, but I would prefer that I did not have to."

"What is it?" Tim asked, very curious.

"I cannot tell you. You will only know it if I have to. It is not something that I want to do, but I will if they make it necessary."

"Why can't you talk about it?"

The selkie looked at him. "There are many reasons that we came to these waters, but one was to get away from those who saw humans as inferior to us. There were some who wished to treat humans as slaves. When we chose to come, we also chose to not teach some of these things we could do in order to keep those things from being used against humans. None are left who know them."

"Except you."

"Yes."

"Why don't they know who you are?"

The selkie smiled.

"That requires thinking about the past. The _years_. It is a word that I know exists, but even I do not really understand it. You know."

Tim did understand what he meant. He still didn't really know how old he was. He knew from what his mother had told him about when he had been born, but even that didn't really tell him what that meant. He had learned to pay attention to the passage of time, but he knew how it felt to ignore it...or rather to not notice its existence.

"In their mind, I have always been part of the herd but they do not think beyond that. I do not think beyond that except when I must."

"Like now?"

"Yes. Like now, but this is not the only time I have thought of the past. It is just that this time, I must do something about my thought."

Tim smiled and looked out the window as they neared the ocean. It was strange but, even though this could be leading to his death, he still couldn't dread returning to the coast. He loved it too much to let even death keep him from it.

"Are you ready to fight for your life?" the selkie asked.

"I hope so. I don't want to die."

"I do not want you to die, either. We will make sure that you do not."

"Sounds simple."

"It may be. It is not always, but it is possible."

"Yeah."

Tim leaned forward. He could almost see the water. He could feel the stirring in his blood, the longing for the sea.

...but he could also feel the selkies. They knew he was coming. They were waiting for him.

To kill him.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Gibbs was currently pushing toward breaking the sound barrier as he drove toward the beach. After he'd got off the phone with Tim, none of them had said much, but there was a feeling of anxiety, knowing where Tim was going and what the result could be.

"Boss, what are we going to do?" Tony asked. "Tim doesn't want us to kill the selkies, even though they want to kill him."

"His father does not seem to mind killing if they attack," Ziva said.

"Yeah, well, his father doesn't seem to mind anything at all. He might as well be a computer," Tony said. "I just don't like that we're rushing into this."

"Sometimes, that is best," Ziva said. "We have talked about it. We know how bad it _could_ be. We have to be prepared to help Tim if we are needed."

"Yeah, but without killing them."

"If someone is attacking McGee, I will kill him," Ziva said grimly. "I will not wait to see if they change their minds. They are not invincible. They will bleed and die just like any other living thing."

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

They pulled up at the beach. It was a lonely stretch of beach and it was now late enough that it was empty.

Or at least, it appeared to be empty. Tim looked through the windshield at the water.

"They're out there. Aren't they."

"Yes."

Tim took a deep breath and let it out.

"I'm scared," Tim confessed. "This terrifies me. I had a human try to kill me last year. Now, I have selkies wanting to kill me this year. Why can't I just live my life?"

"Because it is never just _your _life," the selkie said. "You do not live in isolation. You are a part of two herds and that is hard. It means that what you do can affect many more. And some wish you to only care about one herd. They do not care about what you want. I cannot blame them for it."

"Do you think I'm wrong, then?"

"No. There are no laws that apply to your situation. The others are unwilling to admit that. For now. They are wrong but they think they are right. They need to be taught. This will be a good lesson."

Then, the selkie opened the door and began to walk toward the water. Tim took one more deep breath and followed suit, his skin in his hands. He didn't want to do this, but he knew it was necessary. Part of him wanted to call Gibbs back and see how close he was, but he knew it wouldn't help. They would simply have to deal with this and hope that his team wasn't needed.

As soon as he stepped onto the sand, the seals popped out of the water, some waddling to the beach and removing their skins, others staying in the water. One seal, Tim recognized as one who had seen him in the ocean. He smiled as he felt the sad confusion it clearly was experiencing. It was so much like a dog that he tried to comfort it as he would have comforted Jethro.

Then, he turned his attention back to the selkies who had left the water and were now walking toward him and his father. He saw that some were hanging back, among them, the selkie who had regained his skin and the one who had been born on land as he had.

"You broke the law," one said.

Tim started to speak, but his father stopped him.

"The law does not apply to this," the selkie said.

"You have also broken the law by protecting this one."

"The law does not apply to this," the selkie said again.

"The law applies to all," another selkie said.

"The law is not perfect," his father said.

"The law is all."

"You have your skin?" another asked.

Tim nodded and held it up.

"I didn't know it would happen," he said. "I chose to destroy my skin. I didn't know it would come back."

"But it did and you should have returned."

"I can't do that, but I can't stay away from the water, either. It's home," Tim said.

"There is only one punishment," the first selkie said.

He took a threatening step toward Tim. Other selkies followed. Tim stepped back, but his father stepped in front of them, blocking them from reaching Tim.

"You will not harm this one called my son," he said.

"He endangers the herd. The herd must be protected."

There were murmurs of agreement.

"He does not endanger the herd. He has risked his life to save the herd."

"He risks humans knowing about us. Already some do."

"And they have done nothing to you," the selkie said. "I cannot allow you to harm this one called my son."

"Then, you, too, break the law."

"I keep the law."

"What law?"

The selkie looked at them all.

"The law that came before the law. Selkies do not forget. Selkies do not break a promise made."

There was a heavy, questioning silence.

"When this one was brought to the sea, the one called his mother asked me to protect him. I promised that I would keep him safe. I cannot break that promise. I cannot be a selkie and break a promise."

There were murmurs of agreement, but Tim had the feeling that wouldn't change things much. They might agree that his father had to defend him but still feel that he had to die anyway.

"Let this one speak," the selkie said.

"There is no need for speaking. All know. The law has been broken."

"I say again that the law does not apply to this and I cannot let you harm this one called my son."

"You are only one."

Then, suddenly, two selkies Tim had noticed hanging back stepped forward. They walked across the sand and positioned themselves between Tim and the rest of the herd.

"He is not only one," said the selkie who had returned.

"We are three," said the other. He was one born on land as Tim had been.

"You would also break the law?"

"We do not believe that he has broken the law," said the one born on land.

"You do not?"

"No. You who are born in the sea do not understand the longing for the land among we who were born on the land. Selkies are both land and sea, not one or the other, and there is a desire for the land just as there is for the sea. By forcing this one to give up the land, you are putting him in a prison just as the human woman who stole his skin did."

There was a murmur at that. It was a heavy accusation, tantamount to an accusation of murder. Tim was surprised at the vehemence in the selkie's voice. He had never thought about his connection to the land being related to the circumstances of his birth, only to the loss of his skin and his time spent living on land. Was he right that it was inherent based on his birth?

"You feel this?" another selkie asked.

"Yes. Always," said the selkie born on land. "It is enough to take this form as I do, but I long for more."

"And you? Why do you break the law?" the one asked.

The other selkie shrugged. "It is a human thing, one that you cannot understand. This one saved my life. He returned my skin. He is not one who wishes to harm. I am grateful to him and I must help him if I can, not because of a promise but because it is right to do it."

"Still, you are only three. There are many more."

Tim knew that if his team heard this discussion, they would be shocked at the lack of overt emotion. It was simply a stating of facts, not a threat, not really. And yet, there was a real threat behind it, a determination to do right as right was being interpreted. Tim understood it, even as it only showed him more and more that he couldn't go back to the herd and give up the emotions he'd learned to feel.

"Please, there should not be violence," Tim said. "I cannot hope to have you understand why I can't go back to the herd, but you must understand my desire to live and to be whole. I have been most of my life without my skin. I have it back now."

"It may be understood, but it is still against the law."

Again, he began to advance. Other selkies came with him, but Tim noticed that more were staying back, perhaps undecided, perhaps convinced. He didn't know, but it was not just the three selkies who were not going to attack.

Then, his father stepped forward.

"I will not allow you to harm this one called my son," he said again.

"How can you fight it?"

"I do not wish to show you, but I will. You have but three steps that you may take before I will do something that you will not be able to do. The first time will be a warning and I will harm no one. If you attempt to harm this one called my son, then, the second time it will kill you."

"What is it?"

"I will not say it. You must decide whether or not you will risk it. Will you?"

"Please," Tim said. "I have not told anyone about my skin. The humans who already know have been told but only because of your desire to kill me. I would have said nothing otherwise."

Was that strictly true? Well, probably not, but Tim knew that he'd intended to never tell anyone what he could do.

"The survival of the herd is what matters."

"He is part of the herd, even if he does not live with us," the selkie said. "Each life matters, not just all lives together."

The selkie leading the others took another step forward.

"Two more steps," the selkie said.

Then, he took one more step which brought him very close to Tim's father, just barely not in reach.

"The herd is more important than any one selkie," he said. "If you will not protect the herd, then another must."

With no hesitation, he lunged at Tim's father.

Tim wasn't ready for how quickly the fight began. Up to this point, everything had been very measured, very controlled, exactly as he had remembered the selkies. In all his time with the selkies, he had never seen them physically fight.

He had always known that selkies weren't just humans in disguise, but watching the two selkies fighting, he had another confirmation of it. They just were moving too quickly to be human.

The selkie swiped at Tim's father who ducked as if he had known it was coming and then kicked at the attacking selkie, knocking him back a step. There was no pause in the fight. Tim didn't even dare intervene. He took a hesitant step forward, but the selkie born on land stopped him from getting any closer. All the other selkies were staying back. Tim's father pushed the other selkie away, but the selkie was back in a moment. Tim's father grabbed him mid-swing and threw him away with so much force that the other selkie rolled across the sand and then was still.

For a moment, there was silence. Tim's father looked at the herd, breathing heavily.

"Still, you need a warning. I will give you the warning."

The selkie took a deep breath and then looked up at the sky. As if in fast motion, clouds built up and then, a there was a flash of lightning that struck the beach very close to the selkies. Tim backed up a step, shocked. There had been no dramatic hand gestures, no shouting, nothing. Just his father apparently controlling the weather, causing a lightning strike. His father walked over to where the lightning had struck the sand. He knelt down and dug down into the sand. Then, he picked up something and turned around. He walked back and held it out to the herd. Tim could see that it was a piece of fulgurite, sand heated and melted into rock by the lightning. It should have been too hot to handle, Tim would have thought, but the selkie wasn't bothered by it.

"This is the warning," he said. "There will not be another."

Tim stood there for a few seconds as the other selkies murmured. Then, he stepped forward.

"Please, I don't want anyone to die because of this. It's not necessary. Can't you see that you are creating a conflict that doesn't need to occur? Please, stop."

"You must stop now. We will not allow you to kill him."

The new voice took everyone by surprise. Tim turned and smiled when he saw his team climbing over the rocks into view. They had made it. He didn't want their presence to be necessary, but it was comforting.

Then, he turned back and he could feel the consternation among the selkies. They didn't know what to do, how to take the fact that there were humans seeing them, and not just _seeing_ them but also directly confronting them. This was a dangerous moment, and Tim knew that it could fall out either with an outright physical conflict or with something hopefully better.

He would try to make it better.

Tim turned back and stepped in between the selkies near the water and his team on the rocks. Then, he put out a hand to both sides.

"I know that I'm the cause of this confrontation," he said. "Please, as I am the cause, will you let me speak? Will you hear what I say?"

"You have brought humans here," one selkie said. The mere statement was a condemnation and Tim knew it.

"They already knew," Tim said. "They were allowed to know and they have told no one. We speak of it only when we are alone. Never when others might hear. They are here to defend my life. If you do nothing, they will do nothing."

"It is true," Ziva said. "We are only here to protect Tim."

There was another murmur among the selkies which only grew louder when the seals suddenly came out of the water and waddled over to surround Tim. He couldn't help but smile at them. He had seen them in the water when he had been swimming and known that it was a risk to let them see him, but their joy had been so overt that he hadn't been able to resist playing with them.

"Please," he said again. "Please, let me speak. You think there's only one solution but death does _not _have to be the only option. Please."

For a long moment, there was only silence on the beach. Tim knew that the selkies were likely communicating with each other, but he couldn't hear them if he was right.

"Please," he said once more.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Then, another selkie stepped forward, around the first selkie who had been speaking for the herd, who was still lying on the sand.

"We will hear you but make no promise," he said.

"I understand," Tim said.

The seals waddled back into the sea, leaving Tim to walk over to the selkies. He started, but he heard movement from behind him and he turned back to see Tony climbing down to the sand, shaking his head.

"Tim, that doesn't seem like a good idea," Tony said.

Tim looked back at the selkies who were waiting for him. "For now...it is. Just wait. Please?"

Tony didn't look like he liked the idea, but he nodded. The NCIS team climbed down off the rocks, weapons still in hand but stood, seemingly at ease.

Tim walked to the selkies and sat down on the sand. His father and the other two sat down slightly behind him, but in easy reach. It was still very much up in the air as to whether or not he could succeed in convincing the herd that his death was not required. He probably wouldn't die today regardless, but he would have a target on his back for the rest of his life if he couldn't convince them.

The other selkies sat down across from him. The first selkie stirred from where he had been thrown, but he did not join those sitting. He was there, listening, but Tim knew he was far from convinced.

"Speak," said one. "I promise only that we will hear."

Tim nodded.

"I know the law," he said. "I understand why you feel the way you do. I understand why you think I must die to protect the herd, but what I have done is because I must in order to feel whole."

There was skepticism, and Tim knew that they couldn't fully understand, but he would try to get them to open their minds to it a little bit.

"I was very young when I lost my skin. I was without it for a long time, always feeling maimed, always feeling the pain of that loss. Some of you know that feeling."

There were silent nods.

"But my life was not only pain. I found something that helped to heal the wound. It is called love. Few of you will know what that word means, but it is like what you feel for the sea, only it is felt for other people. I found... a new herd, one that cared for me and taught me to care for them. It could not completely heal the wound of my lost skin, but it is powerful. It is very strong. I had a long time to feel that, so much that my pain for my lost skin faded and I knew I could live without it."

There was an unsettled murmur. The idea of surviving without half of one's soul was shocking.

"It is possible to live as he says," said the selkie who returned. "I did not find that love he speaks of but there is good in the human world."

"Speak," said the one selkie. "We will hear more."

"That was why I chose to destroy my skin and stay on land. I knew that I would still feel maimed if I left the love on land and returned to the sea never able to come back. I chose that, and when I survived it, I never thought that I could go back. I knew I would always have that pain for the rest of my life, but I knew that I had something to help me. But when my skin began to grow back, I suddenly knew that I could be whole again. Being whole as I am is something I cannot give up. I could not survive the fresh wound and the loss again."

More silent nods.

"But..." Here was where Tim didn't know if they would really hear what he was saying, even with the other selkie saying it before. "...but I also cannot live without the life and the love I have found on the land. If I could forget it...but selkies do not forget. I cannot forget the love and the good here on the land. If I left the land and the people here, as you say I must, I would be giving myself another wound that would never heal."

Silent consternation from the selkies. He knew they understood that much. He knew that they understood that he saw them as asking him to do the same thing that had been done to him with malice when he had been young.

"If you can look for another solution, I am willing to talk about what can be done to keep the herd safe and yet allow me to be whole. I cannot live maimed now that I've healed," Tim said. "You must be able to understand that."

"The law is still broken," said one selkie.

"This cannot fall under the law," his father said. "It has never happened before."

"If it does not fall under the law, then what do we do?" asked the one who had been willing to hear.

"Make a new law," Tim's father said. "All laws have a beginning."

"Even if that is true, no one knows the beginning of the law."

Tim looked at his father. He had not seemed interested in refuting that, but Tim could see that this would help, just knowing that one who had made the law was there and could help them see that making new laws was not impossible.

_The argument should stand on its own, not because I have lived long enough to see it._

_You can't ignore the fact that they need something to show that this is possible. No one else has lived as long as you. No one else can know about this except you._

The selkie nodded and turned to the others.

"I helped make the law," he said. "I have seen its beginning."

"Any can claim that."

"I know what you do not," the selkie said. "I have shown that already. Can any remember a time when I was not part of the herd?" He looked around at each and every selkie on the beach, waiting for one to say something.

There was only silence.

"I was among those who began this herd and I was among those who made the law. The law had a beginning. A new law can be made."

"How?" asked one.

"We decide to abide by it. Then, it is law."

"Is it that simple?"

"No," the selkie said. "All must agree. Without agreement, there is no law."

"And what would this new law be?"

The selkie was silent for a few moments, thinking. Then, he looked at Tim for a second before looking back at the herd.

"That a choice can be made so long as the herd is safe. This one called my son can choose to live on land and still be what he is."

"And what will keep the herd safe?"

"If you think it would be safer, I'll only swim alone. If you think it would be safer, I'll only swim with the seals," Tim said. "Whatever will be better while still allowing me to be whole."

"You put yourself before the herd," said the first one, speaking for the first time since the fight.

"If you had to choose between the herd and saving your skin, which would _you_ choose?" Tim asked.

There was silence.

"Can you truly ask more of me than you ask of yourself?"

The selkies were still silent. Then, the selkie who had taken charge stood. The other selkies stood with him.

"I promised we would hear," he said.

"And now that you've heard?" Tim asked.

"You have asked for more than hearing. You have asked for all to change to save your life. This is not a decision that can be made in a moment. We will speak." Then, he looked to Tim's father. "Will you come?"

The selkie nodded and stood.

"I will come. But this one called my son is safe until the decision has been made."

"Yes. He is safe."

"Then, I will come."

"How long?" Tim asked, getting to his feet as well.

"The herd is divided. I cannot answer you."

Then, the selkies put on their skins and returned to the ocean. Tim stood there, watching them leave, feeling unaccountably abandoned. The selkie he had saved stopped and turned back. He walked to Tim and spoke in a low voice.

"You now have what you gave to me. I am grateful. I do not forget."

Tim smiled and nodded. Then, the selkies were all gone and he was standing there alone, watching the water.

...but only for a moment. A hand on his shoulder startled him, and he looked over to see Gibbs, Tony and Ziva beside him.

"Well?" Tony asked.

"I don't know. I'm asking a lot of them. I'm asking them to change the way things have always been."

"You're asking them to let you live, Probie," Tony said, "Stop acting like this is a hardship for them."

"It is," Tim said. "They're afraid, and they probably don't even know that's what they're feeling, but it is. They're afraid of being discovered. I can't blame them for that."

"I can," Tony said.

Tim smiled. "That's because you're not a selkie, Tony."

"We still will not let you be killed," Ziva said. "I do not care what they decide."

"If they decide that I have to die, what will you do, Ziva?" Tim asked. "You can't kill them all, and if you tell someone about them, that will only hurt me at the same time. We have to wait. We got them to think about it a little. That might be enough."

"Where will you be waiting?"

"Right here. I don't think it will take that long. They really have only two options. Kill me or let me live. My father has decided that he can't let me die, so having him there will probably help."

"Would they kill him?" Tony asked.

"If they thought it was necessary. I guess you didn't see them fighting before?"

"No."

"It was really fast. Too fast to be human."

"That's what I thought when we were saving you from that crackpot last year," Tony said. "I still can't figure out how he moves so fast."

"I don't know, either, but he's willing to fight. If I thought I could stop him, I would, but I don't think I could."

"He's trying to save you, McGee. You shouldn't stop that."

"I still don't want someone else to die in my place...or alongside me."

Tim took a breath and then sat down on the sand, holding his skin tightly, waiting and hoping for something good to come out of this.

After a few seconds, he heard the team settling down on the sand as well. He glanced over at them and smiled. If everything worked out, Tim knew that he might get a lecture from Gibbs, but right now, they were here and they were supporting him. He appreciated it. Then, he turned back to face the ocean.

How long would it take?

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

The herd swam together, surrounded by the seals who were expressing some distress at the conflict they could sense even if they couldn't understand it.

_We must decide. We cannot wait long._

_The law has been broken._

_No, it has not. The law must change when new things are known._

The selkies surfaced and then dove back down beneath the water.

_I cannot break my promise. I will leave the herd to protect the one called my son if the herd decides he must die. I will do my best to save him. I must._

_You must, but that would require us to fight you._

_Yes._

_What do we do?_

_Will you accept a new law? Will all accept a new law?_

_And if that law endangers the herd?_

The selkie surfaced once more. In the private recesses of his mind, he allowed himself to be annoyed at the selkie who resisted any suggestion of change. He had turned change into the equivalent of wrong, and that had never been the way things were.

_What if we tried the new law for a time?_

That was a new suggestion, and it came from the one who had returned.

_Tried? Perhaps a temporary law?_

_Yes. If there seems to be more awareness of us, then, we would know that the law did not work and we could talk about it again._

_And if we are discovered in that time?_

_It would not happen all at once. Even the human from before was only one and he did not know where we were. He only believed that we existed._

_Perhaps it would happen at once._

_With caution, we would not have that, and the one called his son could help us know what humans might do to find us._

The selkie could sense the herd coming around to the idea. They were starting to think which was what he had known would be necessary. There were a few who were still unconvinced, but a temporary law that could be revisited was an easier way to introduce something new anyway. And if it worked as he knew it could, then, the temporary law would become permanent. All those living now would remember how it had been introduced, but some flexibility might be useful in the long term anyway.

_I would follow a temporary law, knowing that it could change._

_Would the one called your son?_

_Yes._

_He should not swim alone in his skin. It does not have to be with us, but he should only swim with the seals. There are other seal herds who would accept him if we are not here._

_The seals like him. That is how we knew he had his skin._

_Will you all hold to this law?_

There was a pause and then a wave of assent, even from the one who had resisted the change. The selkie was not sure he trusted that one, but for now, with the rest of the herd accepting this temporary law, he could tell the one called his son that he would be safe.

_I will tell him. He is waiting to hear._

_And the humans with him?_

_They care for this one. Anything that affects the herd will affect him as well. They will keep his secret._

_Then, you may tell him. We will not go back to the sand tonight._

The selkie agreed and began to swim back to share the good news. Yes, it was possible that this would only be temporary, but as long as nothing else happened, he knew that the law would become permanent just because they would see that it wasn't the issue they thought it was.

He was unsurprised to see the one called his son and the humans all there together on the beach, waiting. He swam to a secluded spot and removed his skin. Then, he walked over to the group. The one called his son stood up instantly and just stared at him in silence.

"The herd has agreed to a temporary new law."

"Temporary?"

"Yes. They have never made a law before. They would not simply accept a new law without knowing that it was possible to change if it was necessary."

"What would make it necessary?"

"If you revealed our existence to humans who came after us," the selkie said.

"What are the rules for this law?"

"You cannot swim alone. Some seals are solitary, but we are not. We are only in groups, in the herd. So you must swim with seals or with us, not alone. Can you accept this?"

"Yes," his son said, easily. "I only swam alone before because I didn't want anyone to know. If that's what the herd wants of me, I will do that. There are local herds that are not far from here. Some of them know me."

The selkie turned his attention to the humans standing slightly behind.

"And you will not attempt to follow after us or to be seen often where this one is swimming. That is not in the law, but I say it to you because they will not need much reason to take back this law. The less you are seen by the herd, the better it will be for this one."

The one who led the others nodded and said nothing. That was enough. It was clear that he meant it.

"How long will you stay?"

"I do not know. Not long. It is early for us to be here. We will go back soon."

"Thank you."

"I do what I must to keep my promise."

"Thank you anyway."

The selkie nodded, but then, he turned back toward the sea. For a moment, he had felt something.

"What is it?"

"I am not certain. I will return to the herd. I may see you. I may not."

"I understand."

The selkie nodded and returned to the sea and to his seal form, but he felt somewhat unsettled. He wasn't sure why because everything seemed to have worked out as he had hoped it would, but there was something wrong.

Perhaps it was simply the residual uncertainty from the herd. While they had agreed, they still weren't sure about it.

Maybe that was it.

He dove into the water, hoping that his feeling meant nothing more.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Tim wasn't sure how he felt as his father swam away. Somehow, nothing really felt finished.

"Well, that was good. Right?" Tony said.

"Yeah," Tim said.

"That was not very convincing, McGee," Ziva said. "What is wrong?"

"I don't know. Something. Nothing. I don't know."

"You ready to go, McGee?" Gibbs asked.

"No. I think I'm going to stay here for a while longer," Tim said.

"And do what?" Tony asked.

"Sit and try to figure out why this doesn't really feel over. I think my father felt the same way."

"But he left."

"Yeah."

"Maybe you could try emulating him in that," Tony said.

Tim smiled and shook his head.

"No. I need to stay right here. I don't know why, but I do. You guys can go, though. I'm glad you were here."

Tim sat down, facing the ocean, thinking about the feeling and wondering how long it would take for him to decide it was okay.

There was a silence and then Tim heard the others settling down on the sand beside him. He smiled a little and just sat in place, not speaking, but glad they were there with him, whether they could do anything about it or not.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Gibbs watched as the others drooped and fell asleep on the beach. Tim was curled up with his skin in his hands. Tony and Ziva both had finally fallen asleep as well. Gibbs was very awake. He wasn't sure why. Maybe it was just that with everything feeling still up in the air, he couldn't relax enough to sleep.

Something was still not right. He sat there, thinking about it. They hadn't arrived on the beach as soon as he had wanted and he knew they'd missed part of the confrontation. Things had been starting to calm down a little by the time they'd got there. But there was just something going on, simmering under the surface.

Gibbs sat there, silent and unmoving until just before four a.m.

Tim suddenly sat up. Then, he stood, skin in hand, and headed for the water.

Gibbs jumped to his feet and grabbed Tim just before he reached the water's edge.

"Tim, what's going on?"

Tim looked at him, and Gibbs felt like he was looking at someone alien for the first time in all the years he'd known him. Tim was all selkie. There was nothing human in his gaze.

"Tim, talk to me."

Then, Tim blinked and something changed in his countenance. He looked more like a human being again. Gibbs couldn't have said what was different, but something was.

"Another selkie is fighting my father. I won't let him die for me."

"Tim..."

"You can't come this time, Boss," Tim said. "You can't go where I'm going. And I can't let you stop me. I won't have his death on my head."

Gibbs _wanted_ to stop him. He wanted to tell Tim that his father could likely take care of himself. He wanted to say that Tim wasn't really the right person to leap into a fight that could be to the death.

But he could still see that hint of _otherness_ in Tim's stance. That otherness that told Gibbs he was lucky Tim was giving him even a moment of his time. Tim wouldn't listen, not now.

"Be careful," Gibbs said and reluctantly let Tim go.

Tim nodded once, but then, he swung his skin around him and a seal was waddling into the water. As soon as he was deep enough to swim, he took off at a speed that took Gibbs by surprise. Tim was gone beneath the surface.

As a seal.

He knew it. He _had_ known it for over a year. He'd even seen Tim do that twice in the last day or so. But it was still shocking to see it.

Tim was a selkie.

And right now, he'd disappeared into a world that Gibbs couldn't touch, and all Gibbs could do at this moment was hope that Tim came back.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tim swam as fast as he could toward the fight he could feel happening. It was the same selkie who had attacked his father before, and his father had been taken by surprise this time. This was happening because of Tim himself and he wouldn't allow his father to fight for him, even if his father was able to do it.

He swam, feeling his body moving faster through the water than he had thought possible. It seemed as though there was no limit to how fast he could swim.

He surfaced briefly to take a breath and then plunged back into the water. He was almost there.

As he reached the herd, he could see the churning water as the two selkies fought. This was not merely a fight for prey or even simply a disagreement. This was a fight to the death, and Tim knew it.

He didn't even hesitate. He surged forward into the fight, giving no one a chance to stop him, ramming into the two fighting selkies, forcing them apart.

_Stop this! It is unnecessary!_

The other selkie didn't respond. Instead, he changed his target from Tim's father to Tim himself. Tim wasn't ready for how quickly he shifted his attack. The selkie leapt up into the air and came down on top of Tim, forcing the air out of his lungs and driving him deep into the water.

Tim struggled to free himself from the grip of the selkie, but he wasn't as agile in the water as the other was. He knew it.

Then, the other selkie was violently pushed away from him and Tim surged to the surface to take a breath. He breathed once, filling his lungs and then dove back down to the fight. His father was fighting and now, that made the fight two on one. The human part of him felt that this was a little bit unfair, but the extremely-practical selkie part of him saw it as an advantage that should be used.

He and his father came at the other selkie from both sides, forcing him, not down to the ocean floor, but up to the surface. They continued to lunge at each other, each of them trying to get a hold of the other selkie, but he moved so quickly that it seemed impossible.

Tim was so focused on the selkie that he didn't realize what was going on until he heard waves crashing on rocks. Their fight had taken them back toward the coast. He was distracted enough by the nearness of the rocks that when the other selkie suddenly lunged at him, he wasn't ready for it and he didn't have the chance to defend himself. The selkie bit down on his back. Tim arched backward in pain and then tried to pull away from the grip, but he felt the teeth tearing at him and blood running down his back.

A large wave picked him and the selkie up and threw them both against the rocks. It dazed them enough that the selkie let go, but Tim was dazed as well and he tried to lumber away from the selkie, but he was injured as well as dazed and he couldn't focus.

Then, he saw some movement out of the corner of his eye. He forced himself to turn around and saw his father leap at the other selkie, knocking him backward against the rocks. The two selkies tumbled back down into the water, subsumed beneath another wave that beat against them all. Tim lay on the rocks, water raining down on him, but he couldn't yet move. He was weak from the fight and from his injury. He could no longer see the other two fighting selkies, but he also couldn't bring himself to try and find out what was happening.

After an unknown period of time, there was a seal nuzzling at him. Tim roused himself to confirm that, yes, it was a seal, not a selkie. It was trying to get him to move, but he didn't want to. Walking around was hard enough to do in his seal form. Right now? No.

Then, there were other seals also nuzzling at him, urging him up. Finally, he couldn't resist their prodding. He painfully levered himself up on his flippers and slowly tried to navigate his way off the rocks and to the sand. Wave after wave broke over them as the tide came in. It only made everything harder, but the seals persisted and eventually, Tim managed to get back to the sandy shore. He collapsed in the sand, mustered enough energy to remove his skin and then, his eyes closed.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

The selkie got a grip on his adversary and held on tightly, resisting any attempt to make him let go. He could sense that the one called his son still lived, but his life was in danger and the selkie had no choice but to fight until he was certain that this one could not endanger the other again. He knew that the one called his son did not want any to die for him, human or selkie or even seal, but this one had lied in his claim of accepting the new law. He had not begun the fight in the right way. His attack had been done while the selkie was sleeping. Most of the herd had been sleeping when the attack had begun. He had to admit that the one called his son had intervened at a time when he was beginning to falter.

Now, however, the selkie had the upper hand. He had a hold on the selkie and he was not letting him go. The struggles weakened as the other selkie tired and bled. Still, he held on until the other selkie was still.

The selkie let go. Whether he was alive or dead didn't really matter. He had lost, and so thoroughly that, even if he lived, he would have no place in the herd.

The selkie reached out to find the other. He sensed him on the shore. He could feel the concern of the seals who had helped him.

Quickly, he swam to the shore and saw the one called his son in his human form, bleeding from deep wounds on his back. The selkie removed his skin and knelt down beside him. He probed the wounds and was satisfied when that got a reaction. This one lived. He had not broken his promise.

Not yet.

The wounds were serious, and they were not on the same beach as the humans who had been with them before. He was loath to leave this one in his current state without protection.

He needed others to help him. Silently, he called to the one who had been born on land and the one who had returned, asking them to come and help. He heard their acknowledgment and then returned his attention to the one called his son.

Selkies were wounded at times, but usually, the wounds were either minor or so serious that the selkie died. Because the herd was small, they were careful about injuries and the young were always protected.

Quite frankly, the selkie didn't really know how to deal with an injury. A minor wound would heal on its own. A serious one... maybe it would and maybe it wouldn't.

But the humans dealt with wounds. He had seen hospitals and he knew that injuries were common enough among humans, and he knew that they didn't just hope that injuries would heal on their own..

The two selkies he had called came out of the water, shed their skins and joined him.

"He lives?" asked the one who had returned.

"He lives."

"What do you want from us?" asked the one born on land.

"Protect this one while I go to the humans who are his friends. They will help him."

"You won?"

"I won."

"Death?"

"I do not know or care. He lost."

They both nodded. The selkie got to his feet and listened intently for how far the humans were. He had been in their company enough that their minds were familiar to him.

Then, he began to run toward the beach. It was not far away, but far enough that they would not know where the one called his son was.

It took some time, but he could see the one who led the humans awake. He looked over and saw the selkie and got to his feet.

"What happened? Where's McGee?"

"He is injured. He is in need of your help. We do not heal wounds."

"What kind of wounds?"

The selkie merely raised an eyebrow.

"We do not have weapons."

The man nodded and turned to the other two who were sleeping.

"Tony, Ziva. Wake up!"

The other two humans awakened and sat up.

"What is it? Time to go?" the man asked.

"No. McGee is hurt. Let's go."

They both leapt to their feet and ran for the car. The selkie followed and got into the car with the humans. The drive would be very short.

"How did it happen?" the human who led asked.

"He tried to stop the fight, not wishing any to be hurt. The other attacked him and he fought back, but he does not have enough experience fighting as a seal and when the waves drove us against the rocks, the other was able to grab hold. He bleeds."

There was a brief silence.

"Did he help you?"

"Yes."

"Okay."

"I thought that everything had been agreed," the woman said.

"I shared your thought. This one did not. He attacked as all slept. He lost."

"He's dead?" the other man asked.

"I do not know whether he lives or not. That does not matter. He lost. To all, he is now as dead. None will help him if he lives."

They reached the beach and the humans got out and ran over to where Tim lay in the sand, still bleeding. The selkie who had returned was trying to stop the blood from flowing, but he also did not know what to do.

As soon as the humans approached, the other selkies backed away. The distrust of humans was deeply ingrained, even though they knew that these were likely safe.

The one who led knelt down.

"McGee, can you hear me?"

No words from the one called his son, only a groan of pain.

The selkie watched in quiet fascination as they began to work to stop the blood from coming out of the wounds. They pressed on the wounds with strips of cloth. The one called his son groaned again, but they did not stop.

"Will this one live?" the selkie asked.

The one who led looked up at him.

"I don't know. We need to get him to a hospital."

"What will we tell the staff?"

The one who led smiled a little bit.

"That he got attacked by a seal."

"The blood is slowing, Gibbs," the woman said. "We should move him now."

The one who led nodded.

"We will help," the selkie who returned said.

The two selkies helped the two humans lift the other one and carry him gently to the car. The one who led looked at him.

"Will this happen again?"

"Not for this reason. Who can see what comes? The one who attacked will not. He may be dead or not, but he is as dead."

The one who led nodded and began to walk away.

"You have forgotten his skin," the selkie said. He reached down and picked it up. "After all he has gone through, he should not lose it again."

The man nodded, but he hesitated before taking it in his hands.

"He is the same as he was. This does not change him. He was always a selkie, even without his skin," the selkie said.

The man nodded and then walked away.

The selkie watched him and waited for the others to return. They came back quickly.

"We will return to the herd," the selkie said.

"What of this one?"

"I will return again to see him, but we must return to the herd."

They nodded and the three of them put on their seal skins and swam out to sea.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Gibbs, Tony and Ziva waited for news that Tim was okay. He had lost a lot of blood, and there had been some awkward questions, but they had managed to field them relatively easily. Tim had been swimming and had inadvertently got in the way of the seals who had seen him as a threat and attacked. He had managed to get back to shore, but that was as far as he could go. Since the wounds _were_ from a seal (or at least a selkie who looked like a seal), the evidence would bear out the story.

No need to call police or investigate further...and hopefully, no media coverage. People were injured on the water every day. Even if this was out of the ordinary, it was minor enough.

Hopefully.

Gibbs had hidden Tim's skin in the car, not daring to bring it into the hospital. Tony had already gone out once to make sure it was still there. As hard as it had been to adjust to knowing what Tim was, they were all determined to make sure that Tim was able to remain whole as he described himself. Learning that the way he had been before had been living with constant pain and loss had been a shock, and Tony and Ziva, in particular, would not allow Tim to go back to that life.

It was now around six a.m., and Gibbs knew that they'd have to report that Tim would be taking some time off. Even in a best-case scenario, Tim wouldn't be fit to work the same day that he had been nearly killed by a selkie.

Vance would not be happy, but it couldn't be helped, not right now. He would have to be told, but he would also have to be shown.

Then, all those concerns fell away when a doctor came into the waiting room and walked over to the three of them.

"You're all here for Tim McGee?"

"How is he?" Gibbs asked.

The doctor smiled. "He'll be all right. We were able to stop the bleeding, give him the transfusions he needed, and we debrided the wounds. He's lucky. Those were deep and it looks as though there was some tearing. I've never seen someone injured by a seal before. He must have been in the wrong place at the exact wrong time."

Understatement of the century, Gibbs thought, but he just nodded.

"Can we see him?" Tony asked.

"Of course. He'll be groggy, but Mr. McGee will recover."

Eagerly, they all followed the doctor back to Tim's room. There was someone else sleeping in a bed in the same room. That meant no detailed conversations, but one look at Tim told Gibbs that they wouldn't be able to have a detailed conversation right now anyway.

Tim might recover, but he definitely wasn't recovered at the moment. They could now see bruising that they hadn't seen before. Whatever had happened in the fight, Tim was far from unscathed, even discounting the most serious wounds. He had large bruises on his face and on his arms. Gibbs wouldn't be surprised if the bruising was consistent all over Tim's body.

Tony and Ziva sat down by the bed and Ziva touched Tim gently on the arm.

"Tim?" Ziva asked softly.

Tim's eyes opened slightly and his breathing increased. There were a couple of sounds that came out of his mouth that were little more than mumbling.

"Tim."

"Tim, wake up," Tony said.

Then, Tim's eyes flew open and he started to sit up. Instantly, he winced and moaned and sank back down onto the bed, even before Tony and Ziva could stop him.

He opened his eyes once more, a few tears of pain escaping. Then, when he saw them, he tried to smile.

"Ouch," he whispered.

"Regrets?" Tony asked.

Tim smiled again and shook his head marginally.

"Sorry to be so much trouble," he whispered. "I really...don't want to be."

"Well, think twice before jumping into the fray next time, Probie," Tony said.

"No guarantees," Tim said.

"I figured."

"Did you...see my father?"

"Yeah. He's fine."

"Good."

Tim tried to shift position, but he winced again and stopped moving. His eyes closed again and he seemed to fall asleep.

"We need to call his parents and let them know," Ziva said softly. "I do not want him to be left alone when we go to work."

"He hasn't told them about any of this. He said he hadn't told anyone," Tony said, almost inaudibly. "Maybe we should give him a chance to decide. I'll take a personal day if we need to have someone here." He looked at Gibbs and smiled slightly. "Then, _you_ can be the one to deal with Vance, Boss."

Gibbs didn't blame him for feeling that way, and Vance would definitely have to be dealt with. Sooner rather than later, even if it was just to tell him that he'd get his explanation but he'd have to wait.

"Okay. You stay until you can talk to him, find out what he wants. Ziva?"

"You need more than just you," Ziva said, reluctantly. "Tell us when he really wakes up."

Tony nodded. "Will do."

They stayed for a little bit longer, but then, Gibbs knew that they need to get going. They'd be late to work already and that wouldn't help the situation. So he and Ziva left.

"What will happen, Gibbs?" Ziva asked as they got into the car.

"Don't know."

"We need to tell the others."

"Yeah."

Ziva looked at him for a moment, as if expecting him to say more, but he truly didn't know the answers, so what was there to say? Instead, they were both silent as they headed back to D.C.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tim wasn't particularly happy about waking up. He felt like he was bruised from head to toe and he could feel very clearly the place where the selkie had bit him.

_Not really my finest hour,_ he thought.

He'd had _some_ residual instincts for how to fight, but really, he hadn't had enough experience even before he'd lost his skin. The selkies didn't usually fall back on physical battles. They fought when it was considered necessary, but that wasn't particularly often. Many of the seals didn't fight a whole lot, either.

"Tim, you awake?"

The soft voice startled him and he opened his eyes.

"Tony...what are you doing... here?" Tim asked, aware suddenly that he wasn't quite sure _where_ here was, but he_ was_ quite sure that he wasn't at Tony's place.

"Making sure you didn't need anything. You've been out of it."

Tim looked around. A hospital.

"How long have I been here?"

"Just a few hours. Your roommate checked out about half an hour ago," Tony said, gesturing behind him.

"I had a roommate?" Tim asked.

"Yep. They were keeping him overnight until his family could come. He got a pretty solid concussion by coming into close, personal contact with his own surfboard. How are _you _feeling?"

Tim grimaced. "Like I think I'd rather have been hit in the head with a surfboard."

"Just so you know, we told the doctor that you were in the wrong place at the wrong time, that the seals saw you as an aggressor and attacked."

Tim raised an eyebrow. "Seals don't generally make a habit of attacking humans so far as I know."

Tony lowered his voice. "Well, we couldn't exactly talk about a selkie fight, now could we."

Tim nodded. "Yeah, you're right. I'm okay, though?"

"Yeah. Not great but okay. You look like one big bruise on the right side."

"Feel like it. A wave picked us up and threw us against the rocks at one point."

"So...did you win?"

"Well, _I_ sure didn't," Tim said, wincing again. "You said you saw my father?"

"Yeah."

"Then, he must have. He would have been dead, otherwise. If he won, then, I guess...I win by default."

"So what happened?"

Before Tim could answer, the door opened.

"Ah, welcome back, Mr. McGee. I'm Dr. Staker. How are you feeling?"

Tim tried to sit up a little bit but grimaced.

"That good, huh," Dr. Staker said. "Well, I'm afraid that you'll be feeling that way for the next little while. However, once we're sure you're good to go, we'll release you with the stipulation that you give yourself time to heal and that you watch for any infection in those wounds."

"And you think all I need is time?"

Dr. Staker nodded. "We were able to take care of the blood loss and our main worry is infection. You're very lucky in that none of the bruising looks serious. How did it happen?"

Tim glanced over at Tony. He hated lying, but he knew it was necessary.

"When I was trying to swim back to shore, I was right by some rocks and a wave threw me against them. I wasn't strong enough to stop it."

"If it was after you were bitten, I'm not surprised. Did you have any warning of what the seal was going to do?"

Tim shook his head. "No. I didn't even see them. I figure that they must have been hunting or something and they saw me as intruding. I didn't really _want_ to be fighting with a seal. He obviously had the upper hand...or flipper, I guess."

Dr. Staker smiled.

"Well, I'm glad you managed to get out of that. I haven't heard of seal attacks around here before, but there are times when seals have attacked humans other places. I guess you were just the lucky one."

"Yeah. Lucky me. I like swimming in the ocean. I've never had any problems with it before."

"It only takes once."

Tim sighed and leaned back in the bed.

"Just try to relax as much as you can. I'll prescribe some stronger painkillers, but unless you're really feeling it, it'll just be a larger dose of naproxen or ibuprofen, Tylenol, things like that."

"That's fine. I'd rather have that than an opioid or narcotic."

"Understandable. Well, let me take a look at you and then I'll let you rest. A nurse will be by to change the dressing on the bites, but otherwise, you'll just have time. I'll give you another check this evening and, if all looks like it's going well, we'll release you."

"Okay."

Dr. Staker was quick and thorough with his examination. He helped Tim roll over so he could check on the bites. He declared that everything looked good and then withdrew. Knowing that a nurse would be coming by as well, Tim didn't really say anything until she came. Changing the bandages hurt but not as much as Tim had thought it would.

Finally, they were alone again.

"So...what happened?" Tony asked again. "Or would you rather be sleeping?"

"I'd rather be drugged into a stupor, but I don't really want to _be _in a stupor either," Tim said with a sigh. "The selkie attacked my father while he was sleeping. He was taken by surprise. Even by the selkies' view of things, that was sneaky and underhanded."

"So why didn't they stop him?"

"Because once the fight starts, they wait to see who wins." Tim smiled weakly. "Survival of the fittest. I don't remember any fights at all before. We don't do that because there aren't enough of us as it is, but if a disagreement is that strong, then, it needs to be dealt with."

"By fighting."

"Yeah. But I broke it up."

"Is that against the rules?"

"No. At least, not that I remember. It's just that no one ever does it. There's a very strong sense of self-preservation."

"Oh." Tony's brow furrowed. "I'm not sure I like these guys."

Tim laughed. "That's okay. They're not sure they like you, either."

"Very funny. So if it was those two fighting, how did you get involved besides breaking it up?"

"Well, I guess he decided I was the real cause and so if I was dead, the problem would be solved better than if my father was dead. He almost managed to drown me, but my father stopped him and then we were both fighting."

"Two on one?"

"Better than one on one," Tim said.

Tony smiled and gestured.

"I got distracted and turned around when we got close to shore and he got me in the back. The wave knocked us around and I was dazed, but my father got him to let me go and then they rolled back into the water, but I couldn't manage anything but to get to shore." Then, Tim's eyes got wide. "My skin...I..."

"We got it, Probie. Don't worry. Gibbs didn't think it was a good idea to leave it lying around here in the hospital," Tony said.

Tim sighed with relief and leaned back. The idea that he'd lost his skin for a second time was actually terrifying. For a few seconds, he just had to let himself calm down.

"Well, that's the end of the story as far as I remember. I don't remember anything else until I woke up here."

Tony just nodded.

"So...what else happened?" Tim asked.

"Your dad showed up and said that you needed help. We went to the beach and two of the other selkies were there with you. They didn't seem to know what to do."

Tim smiled. "No hospitals for selkies. You live or die."

"Well, I'm glad you lived," Tony said.

"Me, too."

"There is one thing, though."

"What?"

"You might not want to hear it. You can wait."

Tim _was_ feeling tired again, but he wouldn't be able to sleep with that kind of statement.

"I think I'd better not. What is it?"

"You're...probably going to have to tell Vance, probably show him."

"What? I've already told more than I should have. Why?"

"He noticed that you and Gibbs were gone and he was asking questions that I couldn't answer and then when Gibbs stopped answering me, we had to find out what had happened and Vance has already been put off of learning what the truth was too many times."

"Oh."

That had never even crossed Tim's mind. He had never thought that he'd have to tell a single other human about what he was. Maybe his parents now that he could prove it, but really, the idea of telling Vance that one of his employees was technically of a different species was more than a little frightening. How in the world would Vance accept it? Could he really believe it, even if Tim showed him? That was definitely not on his list of complications...until now.

"I know that...this isn't good," Tony said, shifting around a little uncomfortably, "especially with what just happened last night, but... Vance already knew we were lying before. I don't think he'd accept lies this time."

"No, I understand."

"Maybe Gibbs can talk him out of it."

While Tim had complete confidence in Gibbs in normal circumstances, this was quite a bit different and he doubted that even Gibbs could talk Vance out of getting the whole truth.

"Maybe," Tim said.

"Yeah. Doesn't sound too likely," Tony said.

Tim shook his head.

"Well, we'll figure that stuff out. That's why Gibbs and Ziva are gone. They knew that we couldn't all miss, but we didn't want to leave you alone after what happened. And we weren't sure if you wanted us to call your family or not."

Tim leaned back and stared at the ceiling. His life suddenly seemed impossibly and overwhelmingly complicated.

"I don't know, either."

The weight of all that hit him and just made him feel even more tired. He closed his eyes.

"Just rest, McGee. There's time."

"But is there enough?"

"Yep. Because there has to be. So there is."

"Wake me up if something else implodes in my life, okay?"

Tim felt Tony squeeze his shoulder very gently.

"Nothing else will. You don't _have _anything else to implode."

Tim smiled slightly. That wasn't all that comforting, but he did find Tony's presence comforting and he allowed that to lull him into sleep.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Gibbs walked up to Vance's office as soon as he got back to NCIS. He was tired. He knew that Ziva was tired. They'd all been up more than half the night, but this couldn't wait.

"Is he in there?" Gibbs asked.

Pamela raised an eyebrow. Gibbs just raised an eyebrow in return. Then, Pamela smiled.

"Yes, he is. He locks his door when he leaves."

Gibbs smiled a little and then strode into the office. Vance looked up, briefly startled, then stern.

"Gibbs, would it kill you to give me a _little_ notice?"

"Nope."

Vance rolled his eyes.

"Nice of you to show up today. Did Agent McGee?"

"No. He's in the hospital."

Vance looked concerned. "Hospital? What happened?"

"He got injured last night and he won't be able to come back for a few days."

"Injured? How? And does this have anything to do with the fact that the two of you didn't show up yesterday and apparently were trying to hide that from me?" Vance asked.

He wasn't softening much, but Gibbs couldn't blame him. Strange events had followed Tim in the last couple of years. They weren't _all_ his fault, but they had complicated Tim's position at NCIS in Vance's eyes. He'd been sympathetic so far, but Gibbs could see that his sympathies were wearing thin. Without something to explain it, the sympathy might vanish completely.

"Partly."

Vance sighed in frustration.

"Tell me what's going on, Agent Gibbs. You've put me off time and again and I've let you, but that's over now. I _need_ to know why I shouldn't just wash my hands of this."

That was what Gibbs had been afraid of. Too many evasions and now, Vance was refusing to go along with them.

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"Because you won't believe it if I tell you."

"That's basically what Agent DiNozzo said."

"Because it's true...but you can be shown."

"What difference will it make?"

Gibbs smiled slightly. "It will make it impossible for you to disbelieve it. I just don't know what that will mean for McGee afterward."

"Then, show me."

"I can't. Not now."

"Why not?" Vance asked in resignation.

"Because McGee is still in the hospital and he's the one who has to show you."

Vance looked more than frustrated, and Gibbs knew that he had to do _something_ to smooth the way before Vance said something that Gibbs would regret.

"I'm not lying, Leon. It has to be McGee. I literally _can't_ show you, but McGee will...when he's out of the hospital. At my place."

"Why all the secrecy, Gibbs?" Vance asked, but there was a little less frustration in his question.

"You'll understand when you see it. Not until then. Nothing will help until you see it for yourself."

"And how many of you have seen this thing that you've been hiding from me for over a year?"

"The ones you expect. No one else."

"Ah."

Vance stood and walked to the window. He looked out at the Yard for a full minute in complete silence. Gibbs let him.

Then, Vance turned back.

"It had better be soon, Gibbs."

"As soon as it can be."

"All right. That's all," Vance said. He sat down and started to work again.

Gibbs watched him for a moment and then headed for the door. He

"You didn't ask if McGee was all right."

Vance barely looked up.

"You wouldn't be here if he wasn't."

Gibbs smiled and left the office. He walked by Pamela and back down to the bullpen where Ziva was trying to pretend she wasn't tired.

She became more alert when she saw Gibbs.

"Well?" she asked.

Gibbs just shrugged.

"Autopsy."

Ziva nodded and they rode the elevator down together. Ducky and Jimmy were hard at work, but they both seemed more than willing to stop when they saw Gibbs and Ziva coming into the room.

"Jethro, what is it?" Ducky asked.

"McGee's in the hospital."

"What happened?"

"A difference of opinion from one of them. But just one."

"And a dangerous one, it sounds like," Ducky said. "Is he all right?"

"He will be."

"And in the future?" Jimmy asked. "What about the other stuff?"

"Should be fine. The one who didn't like it is out of the picture. Tim's dad won."

Ducky and Jimmy exchanged looks, but they didn't want to be too explicit in the building. They knew what winning likely meant when it came to the selkies. They definitely had a straightforward ruthlessness that was hard to get used to.

"Tony is with him for now, but he will likely stay for another day or two," Ziva said.

"Then, we will have a chance to visit," Ducky said. "I'll make a point of doing so this evening."

"It will be a long drive, Ducky," Ziva said.

"Nevertheless, it will be worth it."

"Maybe we could sneak out early," Jimmy suggested.

Ducky raised an eyebrow at him but said nothing and Jimmy suppressed a smile at the lack of censure.

"I'll tell Abby," Gibbs said.

"And will you be able to keep her from running off to check on him?" Ziva asked, smiling slightly.

"If she knows that it'll look bad for Tim, she might stay," Jimmy said.

"Yes. She _might_."

"Is there anything else we need to know?" Ducky asked.

"Vance," Ziva said.

"What about him?"

"McGee's going to have to tell him," Gibbs said.

"Ah. I suppose it shouldn't be any surprise that he would reach his limit at some point," Ducky said. "It is too bad that it happened now when so much is in flux."

"That's probably _why_ it happened now, though," Jimmy said.

"Very true. Well, if there's anything we can do, let us know. Otherwise, we'll try to get our work done quickly so that we can go visit Timothy," Ducky said.

Gibbs nodded. Then, he and Ziva left.

"What will you tell Abby?" Ziva asked.

"McGee will be fine and she has to stay. She'll see him later."

"You think she will listen?"

Gibbs rather doubted it, but he could hope.

"Maybe."

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tim was sleeping, and Tony had drowsed a little, but it wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep and so he kept nodding off and then waking back up again. He didn't blame Tim for sleeping, but this wasn't the most exciting time he'd ever had.

Then, midway through the afternoon, with Tim still sleeping, or rather sleeping _again_ after the last checkup, the door opened and Tony roused enough to turn around and see who it was. He was expecting a nurse.

It wasn't a nurse.

It was Tim's father. He looked from Tony to Tim and then back.

"He sleeps?"

"Yeah."

"He is well?"

"He will be. He's not great now, but the doctor said that he'll be fine."

"This is good. How long will he stay in this place?"

"I don't know. Not much longer, but even when he leaves, he'll have to take some time to get better."

Tony still wasn't sure about this whole selkie thing, even after knowing about it for more than a year. It was still strange, but at the same time, he'd managed to incorporate Tim's reality into his own. It was just that Tim's father appearing at odd intervals usually threw a bit of a wrench into the delicate balance he'd established.

"Do you want to sit with him?" Tony asked.

"What does this accomplish? What do you think I will do?" the selkie asked.

Tony smiled. "Wait for him to wake up. It doesn't accomplish anything. We just don't want to leave him alone for now, and I need a break."

The selkie stared at him for a few seconds and then nodded.

"I will sit with him."

Tony stood and stretched. "Good. I don't think anyone else will be coming in, but a doctor or a nurse might and..."

"I know what those people are," the selkie said. "I was with this one's mother when he was born."

"You were?" Tony asked. "I didn't think you did that kind of thing."

Now, the selkie smiled slightly. The expression was so rare that it always stood out.

"I do not, but she asked, and it was part of healing her pain. I was called for that purpose. I stayed until this one was born and then returned to the sea."

Tony digested the idea that Tim's whole existence was owed to a legend being true. A woman called for a selkie to come and heal her pain. It didn't matter how many times he thought it to himself.

It was still strange.

"All right. I'll be back."

The selkie nodded and sat down in Tony's vacated chair, clearly prepared to wait as long as was necessary. That was something else about the selkie, and Tony could only assume that it was a common trait. There was very little hesitation once something was deemed necessary. Granted, this was pretty simple, but still, the selkie would probably sit there unmoving for days if he decided it was a necessity.

Tony shook his head and left the hospital room. He needed to get something to eat and take a walk around outside.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

The selkie sat, staring at the one called his son. He didn't know why a hospital made humans better. It seemed that this one was simply sleeping and that could be done anywhere. However, he also knew that his ignorance didn't necessarily mean anything more than that he was not familiar with many human things.

It had been good that he went back to the herd before coming here. The herd had been in upset. These kinds of things just didn't happen, and it was even worse that the treachery had been perpetrated by a fellow selkie, rather than a human. Once the herd had decided, the other selkie should have accepted it. It was not right to try to kill to make the herd listen, and it was significant that this was exactly what had almost happened. Death was an unfortunate event when it was not from hunting or illness.

And the one was dead. His body had been disposed of so that humans would never find it and do those strange things that the one with pictures on her skin had explained. That DNA would not be used by humans to find the selkies.

All in all, this had not been a very good time, but the results were what he needed them to be. He had to defend this one no matter what, but he had not been forced to pay the price for his aid. He had been willing to pay it, but it had not been necessary.

After a while, the one called his son stirred in the bed and opened his eyes. At first, he didn't seem to notice that there was someone else in the room with him. He stared at the ceiling and winced a little as he tried to move.

"Are you well?" the selkie asked.

Startled the other one jumped a little and winced again.

"I...didn't expect you to be here," he said, sounding a little weak. "What about the herd?"

"They have been calmed. They accept what happened. The other is dead."

"Dead?"

"Yes. This bothers you?"

He sighed. "I don't know. Certainly, I'm glad that I'm alive and that you're alive, but it was just so pointless. I don't want to hurt anyone."

"It is about fear as you said. He feared and thought of nothing else. Since he would not accept the herd's decision, it is best that he is dead. He would cause more trouble for the herd than you. Death is not sought for, but if it is necessary, then, it is necessary."

"I know."

"Are you well?"

The one shook his head.

"No, but the doctor says I will be. That was a bad one."

"Yes. He wished to kill you, but he did not."

"It was close."

"Yes. This was one time when humans were useful. We do not know how to heal these wounds."

"Life or death. Not much in between."

The selkie nodded.

"How long will you be in this place?"

"Not much longer, but I'll mostly be laying around for a while. Will you be moving back north?"

"Yes. Soon."

Suddenly, the one called his son forced himself to sit up. It clearly pained him, but he did it.

"Thank you. I know that you did this because you made a promise, but I don't think that even my mother would have realized how dangerous that promise was going to be."

"Promises are not made because they are safe," the selkie said. "They are made because they are needed. You would have been safe with the herd, but the woman you call your mother needed more than safe. She needed what she knew, what she had experienced. You are not the only pup I have had. I have had many in the time I have lived. You are the only one where a promise was needed." The selkie thought about it for a moment. "That makes this different than it would have been. Perhaps I would not even have remembered that you were my offspring. There were many pups that year and the herd protected them all, including you."

"Still, this could have led to your death, simply because you felt required to protect me."

"I made a promise," the selkie said. "It requires nothing more or less than following that promise."

"Thank you anyway."

Then, he sagged back in the bed and closed his eyes again.

"May I see what they did to heal you?"

"There's a bandage on right now, but I'm guessing the nurse will be in to look at it. I can ask her."

"Yes, please. Perhaps, this is something we can learn. Not this hospital, but something smaller."

The one called his son smiled and didn't open his eyes. Instead, his breathing evened out and he slept once more. The selkie stayed, this time, looking around at all the parts of this room that made no sense to him. Just like in the place where this one worked, there were many machines and incomprehensible objects. He was curious about what they did, but he knew that it would not be good to play with them. Then, he stared at the one right beside the one's bed. There were little beeps, a line continually going up and down across it. It seemed to be measuring something. There were numbers and combinations of letters that didn't seem to be actual words. The selkie stared at it for a long time, trying to understand what it was. Then, he noticed the lines coming off it. The lines went over to the one called his son and when he carefully checked, they were attached to him.

Measuring something in this one? Carefully, he pressed down on his chest and felt the thump of his heart. Then, he looked back at the machine. This machined measured the heart? Why? The heart could be felt without a machine. But then, it was also doing so all the time. So perhaps that was its purpose. The selkie sat back again, curious once more. There was a bag of some kind of fluid. It also had a line that went back to his son, only this line was attached to his arm. It seemed to be inserted into his arm. That didn't seem like a pleasant thing, but it had not seemed to cause any discomfort. Again, the selkie didn't touch it, not wanting to break anything, but he was still curious.

When the nurse came in, she was surprised to see him, but she smiled.

"Hello, I don't believe I've met you."

"No, I do not think you have," the selkie said. It seemed a strange thing for her to say when they obviously didn't know each other.

There was a pause and then she smiled again.

"I'm just here to check on Mr. McGee. I won't be long."

The selkie nodded and moved out of her way. He watched as she gently awakened him and checked the machines.

"All right, Mr. McGee, it's time to change the bandages. Are you ready for that?"

"I guess I have to be, don't I."

"Is this necessary?" the selkie asked.

The nurse looked at him again. "Yes. We don't want there to be any kind of infection that might make the wound worse and this was a serious injury."

"I understand. May I see the wound and what you have done for him?"

The nurse looked over at the one called his son who just smiled.

"It's fine. This is my father."

"Oh, of course. Well, if you'd like to help me out, that will let you see as well."

"What do you wish me to do?"

"Just help your son roll over so that I can get to the wounds, remove the bandage and replace it."

The selkie did as she instructed and he watched in fascination as she uncovered the wounds from the other selkie.

"How have you closed these wounds? They do not bleed."

"Well, of course they don't," the nurse said, looking confused.

"They're called stitches," the one said. "It's a way of closing up bigger wounds to stop them from bleeding."

"And I see it works well. Do these stitches stay there?"

"Well, these are temporary," the nurse said. "They'll dissolve on their own in a few weeks, when his wounds are healing on their own."

"Interesting," the selkie said.

He continued to watch the process.

"Why do you cover the wounds?" he asked as she rebandaged them.

"To protect them until they're healed. Even though they're stitched closed, it's still possible for them to get infected. So we want to be careful." She finished the bandages. "You can let him down now."

The selkie did so and felt the one relax as he was able to lay on the bed.

"Are you feeling any other discomfort, Mr. McGee?" she asked.

"Besides my back?"

"Yes."

"No. I'm kind of achy, but the back is the worst. That's bad enough."

She smiled. "I know, but that will get better. I promise."

"I know. Eventually."

Then, she left, and the one called his son laughed.

"I'll bet she's going to talk to the rest of the staff about the weird questions you were asking."

"Why? I did not know the answers and she seems to know what she is doing."

"Yes, but most people know what stitches are and they know what bandages are."

"I am not a person."

"But she doesn't know that."

"True." He paused. "Do you think it will be a problem?"

"No. I just think she'll wonder where you're from or what's wrong with you that you were so interested."

The selkie sat down. "I do not think that we could put in these stitches, but to cover the wounds is something we could do."

"If you want to stop the bleeding at the beginning, you need to press on the wound, even if it hurts because the pressure helps slow the bleeding down."

"I see. That is something we could also do."

A tired nod. Then, the door opened again and the other man came back into the room.

"Hey, how's it going, McGee?" he asked.

"Just changed the bandage."

"Sounds thrilling. How much longer are you staying?" he asked the selkie.

"I will leave now," the selkie said, standing. He looked at the other one. "I do not know when I will see you. It depends upon the seals. Remember the rules of the new law. Do not swim alone when you are able."

"I remember," the one called his son said.

"If you are as noisy about it as you were the first time, I will likely hear you."

"Noisy?"

"In your mind. I felt your happiness the first time you returned to the sea."

The man looked as surprised as the other.

"Wait, you knew about Tim having his skin back?"

"Yes. I told no one, but I knew."

"Thank you," the one called his son said.

"I made a promise."

"I know."

"I will leave, but I will see you again."

Now, the one called his son smiled in anticipation.

"Yes. I'll watch for the selkies to come down here."

"We will."

"Good-bye."

The selkie nodded and left, satisfied that the other one would heal and that he would be able to swim when it was the right time.

For now, it was the right time for him to return to the herd and for the herd to return to the north.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Tim ended up sleeping again until Ducky and Jimmy showed up in the evening. He had hoped to get released, but it turned out that his doctor had got tied up in another emergency and hadn't been able to come and give him the final check as was required, so Tim had to spend the night in the hospital.

"You are looking pale, Timothy," Ducky said.

Tim smiled slightly. "I feel better now than I did this morning, but I'm not feeling the best. Not my best moment."

Ducky patted him on the shoulder.

"Based on what I have been told, I'm not surprised. You're fortunate that you were able to get here."

"Yeah. It was close."

"But everything is okay, now, right?" Jimmy asked.

"I think so," Tim said. "I think the one was...the only one who had a problem with it."

"And what about him?"

"He...won't be a problem anymore," Tim said.

"Really?" Tony asked.

"Really."

"Oh."

"Yeah, that's how I feel," Tim said. "So...do I have to worry about Abby tonight?"

"No," Jimmy said, grinning. "Gibbs said he was going to make sure she had to stay back for one day to make Director Vance feel better about people disappearing from work."

"And she agreed?" Tim asked, trying to avoid the sinking feeling in his stomach at the mention of Vance.

"I guess so. She's not here."

"True."

There was a brief silence. Then, Tim had to ask.

"Is anyone talking about me?"

"What do you mean, Timothy?"

"Like before."

"Oh."

There was an awkward pause and everyone tried not to look at Jimmy, not that he'd been one to talk about Tim but that he had been part of that time. For that brief moment, it didn't matter that he and Tim had talked it out, that he had been instrumental in _stopping_ the talk at NCIS. It was just for that brief moment.

"No," Jimmy said, finally. "Nothing like that. I think that it'll start getting around that you were injured, but what caused it..."

"Well, hopefully no one will get that much information," Tony said. "Even the doctor got only an abbreviated version."

Then, they all glanced toward the door. It was tightly closed and no medical personnel were nearby.

"Careful, Anthony," Ducky said. "This isn't necessarily a private space."

"Yeah, I know. Getting too casual with it, I guess."

Tim smiled a little. The idea of Tony being casual about Tim's identity was actually almost funny. Then, he grimaced again at the twinge of pain. It wasn't that it was unbearable by any means, but it was still there. Seal teeth weren't particularly huge, but they were still sharp and that had been a mean grip.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Timothy. Would you like to rest?"

"Yeah...but no." Tim sighed. "Until I fall asleep again, all I have is you guys to distract me from my back."

"Well, then, if distraction is needed, I think we can all assist," Ducky said.

He settled back and began to tell a story about something. Tim began to get drowsy again as the latest dose of painkillers hit his system. The words started to lose all meaning and all he had were the voices. Eventually, his eyes drifted closed and he fell asleep with the comforting sound of Ducky's maundering.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Ducky kept talking, even after Tim's eyes closed, but once he had visibly relaxed, Ducky allowed his voice to grow softer and softer until he was almost whispering and the became nearly impossible to hear. Then, he smiled and stopped talking.

"He looks pretty rough," Jimmy said, softly. "Is he really okay?"

"The doctor said he'd be fine. This is better than he was when we first found him," Tony said. "Well, the bruises look worse than when we first saw him, but overall, he looks better."

"Too bad," Jimmy said.

Ducky had to agree. Tim was a little pale and he was clearly in pain, and very bruised. However, if he was already improving, he could hope for a quick recovery.

"Hey...did you look at... you know?" Jimmy asked.

Tony raised an eyebrow.

"I was just wondering if there were holes on it, too."

Tony's brow furrowed.

"I don't know. I didn't really look. Have to ask Gibbs. What would be the science of that?"

"Who really knows, Anthony," Ducky said. "This is new ground for all of us, perhaps even including Timothy himself."

Tony nodded.

Tim didn't wake up again during the evening and eventually, it was time to head back to D.C. Tony decided he'd better go back, hoping to keep the upheaval at NCIS as minor as possible, wanting to help make Tim's return easy in spite of Vance's current ambivalence. However, they didn't want to leave Tim alone, either. So Jimmy volunteered to stay at the hospital and hopefully take Tim back in the morning.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Jimmy watched Tim sleep. This was the second time that he'd seen Tim in the hospital because of something related to his being a selkie. What kind of a life must he lead where he could be at risk from both sides of his ancestry? How did he deal with it?

Then, Tim stirred and winced and his eyes opened. He blinked a few times and then looked over and saw Jimmy.

"Hey," he said softly. "What are you doing here, Jimmy?"

Jimmy smiled. "Waiting for you."

"Why?"

"Well, we figured that you'd get released this morning and you'd probably need a ride back. I'm not sure you'll be ready to drive."

"Oh. Probably not." Tim leaned back and stared at the ceiling for a few seconds.

He really didn't seem very happy with his situation. Of course, he'd been bitten by a selkie and that would obviously not be pleasant, but even so, it seemed to be about more than that.

"Is something else wrong, Tim?" Jimmy asked.

"What do you mean? Isn't a seal bite on my back and bruises everywhere else enough wrong?" Tim asked.

"Yeah, it is, but I feel like there's something else bugging you. Is it me?"

Tim sat up quickly, winced and fell back.

"No, of course it's not you. Why would you think that?"

"Well, the last time you were in a hospital..."

"Right. Well...unless you've changed your mind and you _are_ still mad at me..."

Jimmy shook his head.

"Then, I'm not worried about you at all," Tim said.

He tried to shift position and winced again, then, clearly gave up on being comfortable.

"Is there something else?" Jimmy asked again.

Then, the door opened and the doctor came in.

"I'm so sorry for the delay, Agent McGee. It's one of those things and past a certain hour, if we don't get you out by then, you can't deal with all the parts of checking out of the hospital and it just gets easier to stay for the night. I am sorry."

"It's all right."

"Good. Now, a nurse will be in to change your bandage once more, but after that, we still need you to keep an eye on your wound and you'll need someone to help you as you care for it."

"For how long?" Tim asked.

"At least a week. I understand you're from D.C.?"

Tim nodded.

"Then, I'll recommend that you see your regular doctor after a week and have him check the wounds thoroughly for any sign of infection, just in case something went wrong."

Jimmy watched as Tim listened to the doctor's instructions about the bandaging, the painkillers, how much time he needed to take it easy. Tim just nodded most of the time without saying anything else. Then, the doctor left, and he was replaced by a nurse who did the final check and finally, it was time to go.

Tim looked uncomfortable as he got into the wheelchair. He still looked uncomfortable when he settled into the front seat and sighed. He closed his eyes while Jimmy got in. Then, they were off to D.C. At first, Jimmy wasn't sure about saying anything. Tim seemed pretty miserable, but at the same time, Jimmy was sure that it wasn't all about his physical discomfort.

"Tim?" he asked.

"Yeah?" Tim said, softly.

"Do you want sleep or..."

"No. I'm not sleeping. I'm too uncomfortable to sleep, and I can't take any painkillers yet."

"So...am I right?"

Tim opened his eyes, but he just stared at the roof of the car rather than look over at Jimmy.

"About what?"

"That there's something else bugging you besides your back."

"Oh."

Tim took a long, deep breath and then let it out slowly.

"Yeah," he said, finally.

"What is it?"

"Right now? Pretty much everything."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that..." Tim paused. "...that my life is so complicated right now and I just don't feel like I can face it. My parents, my mother, the selkies, NCIS, Vance, all of it. The fact that a selkie wanted me dead, was willing to kill my father to get what he thought was right. All of it. Even the good things are just another complication right now. I don't know how long it will take to deal with it."

"I'm sorry, Tim. Is there anything I can do?"

Tim laughed a little and then winced.

"I don't think there's anything anyone can do...unless you can speed up time so I can get through this and have all the decisions made and everything without having to go through it."

"Nope. Sorry."

"I know. I appreciate you asking, Jimmy."

"Tim, I really have forgiven you for all that. I really don't think about it anymore."

"You sure about that?"

"Yeah. I am. I needed the push to get myself to think about it, but I did and I dealt with it."

Silence fell for a few minutes. Jimmy wasn't sure what Tim was thinking. He was still staring at the roof of the car. Then, suddenly, he started talking again.

"When I first realized that my skin was growing back...I was so... That first night. It was... pure ecstasy. It was like I'd been given my life back again when I hadn't really even remembered that I'd lost it. I thought I'd managed to deal with the loss and that I didn't really miss it intensely, but I did. Oh, I did." Tim's eyes closed. "It was like I could breathe and feel and see and touch life in a way I hadn't been able to to do for...most of my life. Imagine that kind of feeling and then... then, having to fight to have it, to keep it, having to hide it so that no one knew, having people feel you deserve to die because you're finally happy." Tim actually sounded a little choked up. "Imagine that, Jimmy. Imagine being given your life back and then being told that it was wrong to have it."

Jimmy reached over and gently squeezed Tim's shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Tim, but you're not wrong to want your life back. You're not wrong to be happy about being whole again. None of that is wrong. Anyone who says it is, human or selkie, they're the ones who are wrong."

"Thanks," Tim whispered.

Another long silence.

"Anyway...that's what wrong," Tim said finally.

Jimmy smiled sympathetically and made a mental note to tell Ducky about what Tim had said. Probably he should tell other people, but he was much less nervous about telling Ducky than he was about the others.

"What was it like?" Jimmy asked. "What does it feel like to change? Can you tell what's happening?"

"It's impossible to describe because I do feel it, but at the same time, it's so natural that I can't really explain it. What does it feel like to fall asleep or to breathe? How do you explain why those things happen and what exactly the feeling is? But for me, it was like going home. It was like being given back a missing limb. That first time, all I wanted was to run to the ocean and swim, but I had just enough reasoning ability that I knew I'd have to wait. So I did, but I actually was out in the ocean as a seal for three days and I didn't even notice the time passing. I just lived."

And then, for just a moment, Jimmy felt he might understand it a little bit. Tim smiled. He hurt. He ached. He was uncomfortable and had a lot on his plate, but right in the moment, he smiled and it expressed all the emotions he'd tried to describe in words. And Jimmy felt that he might also understand why Tony and Ziva had become so protective of Tim. When he smiled like that, it was obvious how unhappy he'd been before and it was wrong that anyone should try to take that happiness away from him.

The rest of the drive to D.C. was uneventful, and Jimmy drove Tim to Gibbs' place, helped him get inside and then lie down on the couch. Tim ate a little and took his painkillers and then fell asleep.

Jimmy sat there for a little while, wondering if he was supposed to stay and miss a full day of work. Of course, he rarely took days off. He had the time, but with everyone worrying about what might happen with Tim's job, he wasn't sure which was the best option.

Finally, he decided that he'd just sit there and wait for someone else to show up. Tim should be perfectly safe, but still...


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Gibbs walked into his house, holding Tim's seal skin in his hands. It still felt very strange to him to be doing that. It just wasn't right, but it was true, and that was what mattered most. This wasn't the world he had thought he knew, but it was the world he now had. No changing that. So he didn't bother trying.

Still, when he saw Tim sleeping on the couch, still looking pretty weak from his fight with a selkie (a selkie!), he wasn't sure how to take it all. Jimmy was sitting on a chair and he looked up silently when he saw Gibbs coming into the room. Jimmy's eyes went, irresistibly, to the skin in Gibbs' hands. There was a question in his eyes. Knowing that Tim wouldn't mind, he walked over to Jimmy and held out the skin. Jimmy hesitated and then, tentatively reached out and touched the skin. He touched it for a second and then pulled his hand back. But then, he touched it again.

_Wow._

Gibbs almost smiled when he saw Jimmy mouth his amazement without actually speaking.

"Has he been awake at all?" Gibbs asked, softly.

Jimmy shook his head.

"He lay down and fell asleep really fast. If it wasn't for the fact that he's snored a few times, I wouldn't have been sure he was alive."

Gibbs laughed softly.

"All right. You can go, Palmer. Thanks."

Jimmy nodded and got up, readily enough. It probably hadn't been an exciting day, but until Tim could take care of himself, Gibbs really didn't want to leave him alone. And if Tim was sleeping the entire day, he wasn't ready to take care of himself.

Jimmy left and Gibbs sat down, still holding Tim's skin. He had checked it and it didn't seem to have any holes in it. But somehow, he was sure that, if Tim did put it back on, there would still be wounds. He still didn't understand how all this worked. And quite frankly, he wasn't sure he'd be happier if he did. What he did understand was that Tim needed time to recover before he was called upon to perform for Vance. He had dark bruises and some abrasions, all likely from being thrown against rocks. Just those by themselves looked plenty painful. Adding in the bite wounds on the back just added in an extra layer of pain. He didn't blame Tim for being wiped out.

After another hour, Tim began to stir. Gibbs set the skin down beside Tim and went into the kitchen to get dinner ready. Tim wouldn't likely feel like eating much, but he should eat _something_. He just decided to heat up some soup. It would be easy, both to make and for Tim to digest. Then, he walked back into the living room. Tim was sitting on the couch, holding onto his skin.

"How are you feeling?" Gibbs asked.

Tim looked up quickly and then winced at the injudicious movement.

"That good?"

Tim managed to smile a little.

"Yeah."

"Well, you should eat something. Can you make it into the kitchen?"

"Probably," he said, and started to stand up.

Gibbs rolled his eyes and walked over to help. Tim tensed a little as Gibbs began to lift him and then relaxed as Gibbs supported him without putting too much pressure on his back.

"How long until you take a painkiller?" he asked.

"As soon as I eat something," Tim said softly.

"Okay."

He helped Tim into the kitchen and helped him sit down, his seal skin in his lap. Tim was a little pale as he ate, and he didn't speak at all. He just ate. Gibbs let him. When he finished eating, Gibbs got his painkiller and then helped him into the spare room so that Tim could sleep on a bed instead of the couch. Tim sat down carefully on the bed.

"I have to say, Boss, that this pretty much sucks."

"Don't blame you."

Tim closed his eyes and nodded. Then, he let Gibbs help him lie down. He opened his eyes briefly and sighed.

"What will happen when Vance sees me?"

"Don't know."

"I don't want to have to show him."

"I don't think you're going to have much choice this time, Tim."

"I know."

There was a pause and then Gibbs tried to be encouraging.

"It's getting better, Tim."

"Maybe I'll see that, but not yet."

Then, Tim closed his eyes again and fell asleep, holding tightly to his seal skin. Jimmy had called and told Ducky about Tim's worries and Ducky had shared that with Gibbs. One thing at a time, but he didn't blame Tim for feeling overwhelmed. They would simply all have to give him the time he needed, especially Abby who was simply giddy at the idea that Tim could now answer all her questions (or so she thought).

Gibbs might not be as obvious about it as Tony and Ziva, but he had no intention of letting Tim suffer any more than was absolutely necessary. He would fight Vance on firing Tim if he tried to. He would stand between Tim and anyone he might need to. Finding out how consistently miserable Tim had been, that his life had been one of trying to find reasons to hang on, rather than simply having a few bad days was a shock. He would fight against anything that might send Tim back to that state.

With that thought, Gibbs decided to sleep on the couch that night, just in case Tim ended up needing something.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Over the next few days, Tim did start to heal up physically and that actually helped his mood quite a bit. He was still bruised and he admitted to the ache from his wounds, but the outright pain had begun to fade. Ducky had been happy to see no sign of infection and Tim had gone to his regular doctor as he had been forced to do and his doctor had agreed with Ducky's diagnosis.

The one issue as far as Tim was concerned was that, as he healed, he was getting ever closer to having to show Vance just who and what his agent was. That made him more than a little nervous. In fact, it made him extremely tense.

Gibbs had gone to work, and Tim was being left alone finally. He sat on the couch in Gibbs' main room, staring at his skin. This was still the best thing that had happened to him almost in his entire life, but it was such a complication, and he really wanted something that had made him so happy to be simple. He couldn't possibly give it up, but it was so hard to navigate through all these complications. There was a temptation to leave all the complications behind and just return to the selkies where things would definitely be simpler. However, at the same time, Tim knew that he wouldn't be happy with the selkies, not in the long term, and he wasn't sure how long he would live. Since he was closer to human, would he have a human lifespan or would he be as long-lived as his father apparently was? He didn't know. Another complication.

Finally, he decided he needed to put on his skin, just to make sure that everything was okay. He was feeling bruised still, but he was much better than he had been.

So he went to the bathroom, put some water in the tub and then gingerly swung his skin around himself and took his seal form. There was a special soreness that he felt, probably due to his injury, as if the seal skin had extra surface bruises that hadn't yet healed. Weird. Still, he climbed into the tub and lay there for the next few hours, just enjoying the sensation. He wasn't ready to return to the ocean yet anyway. Too many aches and pains, but at least he was feeling better.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

The herd was beginning to calm and return its usual activities. Nothing had happened so far and that meant they could set all the excitement to the side and think only about what was currently happening as they usually did.

The selkie, however, found that he couldn't do that so easily. The events of the last while had been so different that he wasn't ready to set it aside.

He hauled out onto a rock and looked out at the ocean and then looked at the land. He had lived almost all his life in the water, taking his human form when necessary but mostly living in the water, not even thinking about it. All of this chaos had made him think about what he had always taken for granted. He could admit that he'd never given a second's thought to the idea that some of the selkies might prefer more time spent on land than in the ocean. Part of it was simply practicality. The human world had many more complications than the seal world did and living mostly as seals made their lives easier.

But perhaps it was time to think more about changing the way that they approached their lives. The selkies were social beings. They did not live alone. The herd was both something needed and something wanted. Without the herd, there was danger. Without the herd, there was uncertainty. Even the one called his son had found another herd on land, although they were not called that.

Would anything change? Perhaps not for a time. The herd had already allowed a large change. To ask for another would be to push harder than the herd could accept.

For now, let things stay as they were, but he promised himself that he would not forget this feeling. He would not forget that he should think about the way things might change.

Temporary decision made, the selkie slid off the rock and back into the water.

Back home.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Vance had to admit that his irritation at being jerked around by his MCRT was just slightly softened by his own curiosity. What in the world could Tim have to show him that would make all the events of the last year clear? What could possibly excuse the complications that Tim had suddenly brought to NCIS? He had to admit that he had no idea what it might be. Gibbs seemed certain that it was impossible to explain and that it would be all that was needed. Vance was skeptical that, no matter how shocking, it could make everything clear.

But he was curious.

He was also feeling a little impatient. Granting that Tim had some injury that needed to heal, Vance still wanted to know what was so important and yet could be put off for two weeks.

However, it wasn't as though he didn't have plenty of other things to do with his time and so he tried to get back to his work.

For most of the day, he truly succeeded. He had meetings to attend, files to go over and politics to avoid. It took all his attention and by the end of the day, he was ready to go home and spend time with his family. While he generally enjoyed his job, there were days when all he wanted was to be at home with no other calls on his time.

In fact, he decided that he was going to take advantage of the fact that _he_ at least had no cases that needed attention. He shut down his computer, turned off the television and then stood up to leave his office.

And in typical fashion, as soon as he took a step toward the door, Gibbs came striding into the office. Pamela had already gone home, not that she would be an effective deterrent for Gibbs.

"What do you want, Agent Gibbs? And can it wait until the morning?"

"No. You ready to see?"

"Is Agent McGee ready?"

Gibbs actually smiled a little.

"No, but he never will be. He just knows that he needs to, and he can now."

"And it has to be at your place?"

"Can't be here."

Vance sighed, but at the same time, his curiosity made itself known once more.

"All right. This had better be worth it, Agent Gibbs."

"I agree."

Vance raised an eyebrow but allowed himself to be led out of his office and out of the building.

When he pulled up in front of Gibbs' home, he couldn't help wondering if Tim was actually comfortable there or if he wished he was somewhere else.

Then, he got out and walked to the front door. Gibbs had beat him there. No big surprise. Vance didn't bother to knock, knowing that Gibbs never locked his door and knowing that he was already expected.

When he got inside, he saw Tim sitting nervously on the couch, holding something in his hands.

Tim stood up.

"Director," he said, clearly uncomfortable.

"How are you doing, Agent McGee?" Vance asked.

"Okay. I'm getting better."

"Good. Now, why am I here?"

Tim looked sideways at Gibbs.

"Basement," Gibbs said.

Tim nodded and followed Gibbs. Vance stifled a sigh at what seemed to be needless drama and delay. Still, that little vein of curiosity kept him from just calling a halt to all this. Instead, he followed the other two down to the basement.

"Well?" Vance asked as he sat down on a stool.

Again, Tim looked at Gibbs and seemed extremely uncertain.

"Your show, McGee," Gibbs said.

Tim nodded and turned back to Vance.

"Director, I don't know if I should apologize for not telling you about it or if I should apologize for what I'm about to show you."

Vance raised an eyebrow.

"Maybe you should just get on with it and worry about apologizing later," Vance said.

Tim nodded and swallowed.

"Before I do, Director, can you just promise me that you won't tell anyone what I'm about to show you? My life is literally on the line. It's why I got injured and I'm just getting over that."

"I can't make promises before I know what's going on," Vance said.

"You need to promise now," Gibbs said.

"And have you all done that?"

"Yeah."

Vance stifled another sigh.

"Fine. I promise."

Tim sighed with relief. "Thank you. Now... I can only hope that you'll try to understand this."

"Understand wha–?"

Vance didn't get a chance to finish his question. As he watched, Tim suddenly took the object in his hands, swung it around his shoulders and...

...and suddenly, there was a seal in front of him.

He let out an inarticulate exclamation and leapt to his feet.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Quickly, Tim removed his skin and tried to do something that would remove that shocked expression from Vance's face. He had reacted in the worst possible way, and Tim was terrified that everything would be ruined.

"Please, Director. I know it's weird. I know it's nothing that you expected, but if you could please hear me out!"

"What... just... What did I just see?" Vance asked.

"Director... sir... I... I'm a selkie."

"And what is that?"

"I... I can turn into a seal, sir. This is my seal skin." Tim held it out, but Vance didn't seem inclined to touch it, so Tim lowered it.

"You can turn into a seal," Vance said carefully. His tone of voice made it sound like it was about the most ridiculous or insane thing he'd ever heard...which it probably was.

"Yes."

"If this isn't some kind of trick, Agent McGee..."

"It's not."

"How did this happen?"

"I was born like this," Tim said. "I've been this way since I was born. I started growing my seal skin when I was a baby."

"So...your parents?"

"My birth mother is human. My birth father is a selkie. My adoptive parents are both human," Tim said.

Vance didn't appear to be any happier.

"And how does all this relate to what happened last year?"

Tim swallowed.

"It has everything to do with it. Do you want the whole story?"

"I'd better have the highlights," Vance said.

Tim couldn't tell what Vance was thinking, but he knew that there was no other option than to keep going until the end of this and hope that his life on land wasn't ruined by this. Gibbs was giving him no help, but he _was_ there.

"The woman who was killed stole my seal skin when I was young. It's how come I ended up living on land. I had never been able to find her. My birth father did...and he killed her."

"What?" He looked at Gibbs for a moment. "You knew this, Gibbs?" Vance asked.

"Do you honestly think there was any other option, Leon?" Gibbs asked. "Did you want to tell SecNav that she was killed by a selkie?"

Vance sighed.

"Go on, Agent McGee."

"She had done this to other selkies, too."

"How many other selkies are there?"

"There's a herd here. It's not huge, but there are herds other places. I've never been to any of them. Selkies aren't common, Director. There really aren't very many of us."

Vance nodded and gestured.

"One of the selkies died from it. I stole another of the skins and gave it back to the selkie who had survived, but I didn't want to leave here and the law of the selkies is that you have to once you get your skin back. You can't go back to your human connections because it might reveal our existence to the world and that would be dangerous. But I couldn't give up what I had. So Abby got permission to destroy my seal skin."

"Then, what are you holding?"

"My skin...that grew back a few months ago," Tim said. "It's never happened before. No one knew it was possible."

"And your injury?"

"One of the selkies wanted me dead because I was asking the herd to change. I didn't want to have to go back, but destroying my skin before almost killed me. I couldn't go through it again. My father saved my life."

Tim took a deep breath and waited. Vance still didn't seem all that enthused. Tim couldn't blame him, but he was terrified that this was going to blow up in his face, and then, all the pain, all the struggle...it would be for nothing.

Vance sank down onto a stool and then looked at Gibbs.

"How long have _you _known about this?"

"That Tim is a selkie, for over a year. That he actually had his skin back, for about two weeks longer than you have. Tim was trying to keep it to himself."

"Seems like you haven't had much success at doing that, Agent McGee," Vance said.

Tim winced.

"I know, but I really have tried."

There was a long pause wherein Vance appeared to be staring hard at Tim's seal skin. Tim didn't know what he was thinking about and he really wished he did. Then, Vance looked at him again.

"What are you expecting to come from this revelation, Agent McGee?"

"I'm hoping that I won't lose my job, sir," Tim said. "NCIS is one of the things that saved me when I was trying to find a reason to hang on in the human world. It means so much to me, Director. I don't want to lose it."

"Why tell me this?"

"Because you needed the truth. Any lie we came up with would only make things worse at this point," Tim said. "I've had a lot of things go wrong, and some of my problems as a selkie have spilled over into NCIS, making things harder for people here. You gave me a chance, knowing that I wasn't telling you everything. I'm grateful for that. ...but everyone has their breaking point and, with what happened this last time..."

Vance nodded slowly.

"So you're telling me that you're literally a different species but that you want to keep working for NCIS."

"Yes, sir."

"And you expect me not to tell anyone else."

"I shouldn't even be telling you," Tim said, earnestly. "The selkies have killed to keep their secret. My father managed to persuade them to let me stay on land with certain restrictions, but even at that, one didn't agree and still tried to kill me and my father. If you make this public, sir, I'll be killed, and the selkies will likely be exposed and then experimented on."

"You did promise, Leon," Gibbs said.

"Yes, I did. Anything else you need to tell me, Agent McGee? Do I have to worry about the selkies making an assault on NCIS?"

Tim actually felt like he could laugh.

"No, Director. The selkies don't work like that. They don't have weapons. They don't have an army. Just the herd. All they want is to be left alone."

Vance nodded slowly.

"How long will it be until you're ready to come back to work?"

Tim felt a glimmer of hope.

"My doctor says that I should give myself one more week since it's pretty much impossible not to move my back no matter what I'm doing. Then... I'll be back?" Tim turned it into a question, not wanting to assume.

Vance raised an eyebrow and then stood up.

"I can't make a final decision at this point, Agent McGee. I need to think about this."

"I understand, sir," Tim said, trying not to sound disappointed.

"All right. You've told me, and all things being equal, I have no intention of revealing your secret."

"Thank you, sir."

Then, Vance left the basement. Gibbs followed him out. Tim walked over to the stool Vance had been sitting on and sat down, staring morosely at his seal skin. This had been such a wonderful thing. How had everything started falling apart? Was it just some kind of selkie curse? All the stories about the selkies were essentially tragedies. Was it just inevitable?

After a couple of minutes, Tim heard Gibbs coming back.

Then, there was a light hand on his shoulder.

"Give him a chance, McGee."

"I'm still the same person, Boss," Tim said. "Just because he knows doesn't mean that _I'm_ any different."

"This is a big thing, Tim. Give him a chance to get used to the idea."

"Maybe it's just not meant to be. Maybe I can't have what I want. Maybe..."

"Don't, Tim. You told Vance something that he didn't even think was possible. Let him work through it. Don't expect more than people can give right away."

Tim nodded. He still was afraid that this was the end of his life on land. Never mind that he could find another job and that it wouldn't mean that he couldn't be friends. His life on land was so bound up in NCIS at this point that losing it would feel like losing it all.

"You've done your part. Just give it some time."

Tim nodded again, but he didn't look up.

"Go to bed."

Another nod and Tim got up, feeling the pull in his back. Then, he trudged up the stairs, walked to the spare room, lay down without changing his clothes and stared up at the ceiling.

Sleep didn't come for a long time.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

For the next couple of days, things seemed to be in limbo. Vance said nothing more about Tim's return or not. Tim said nothing more about what might or might not happen. The team didn't dare talk about it, although they wanted to. It almost felt like talking about it might jinx them.

Then, one evening, Gibbs saw Vance standing by the river, staring out at the water. He changed his trajectory and walked over.

"Thought you weren't allowed outside alone," he said.

Vance smiled slightly.

"Even I can be trusted to be alone occasionally," he said.

"Tim needs to know what's going to happen. You can't just leave it hanging."

"I know. It's not fair to him," Vance said. "Be honest, Gibbs. How long did it take _you _to come to terms with it?"

"Which part? Just knowing or seeing?"

"Just knowing."

"A few months."

"And seeing?"

"Not yet."

Vance nodded.

"The world made sense a few days ago."

"Still does. Just not the sense you're used to."

Vance smiled and nodded.

"Yeah."

"McGee is still the same person."

"Only he's not a person."

"Yeah, he is. Even when he's...a seal, he's not an animal. He can think and react and plan just like when he's...human."

Vance turned away from the river.

"You tell me, Gibbs. Would you be able to make this decision as fast as you want _me_ to make this decision?"

"Yeah," Gibbs said, but then relented. "But I'd be questioning it all along the way."

"I realize that, logically, knowing more about Agent McGee shouldn't make any difference. Logically, I know that. But..."

"...but it's not logical."

"No. And it makes a difference." Vance turned back to the river for another minute or two. Then, he turned back to Gibbs again. "Do you trust him?"

"Yes."

"No doubts?"

"None."

Vance shook his head and looked around the Yard and then back out at the river.

"I'm living in a world where there are people who can turn into seals."

"You always were."

"Yeah, I know. Now."

A deep breath.

"Tell Agent McGee that he can plan on coming back when his doctor clears him."

Gibbs smiled and nodded, knowing that this wasn't an easy decision.

"It gets easier," he said.

"Does it?"

"Yeah. Takes a while, but it gets easier."

"His father?"

"If you look him in the eye, you'd never mistake him for a human being."

"His mother?"

"I haven't met her, but McGee has. She's human."

"Who also knew about selkies...or did she?"

"From what McGee has said, she did."

Another slow nod.

"If it helps, Abby ran Tim's DNA and it's mostly human."

"It doesn't help. I assume she used NCIS resources to run that test?"

"Yep."

Yet another nod.

"He'll be on desk duty?"

"Probably. He nearly died."

"Okay. Maybe by the time he's ready for full duty, this won't seem so bizarre to me."

Gibbs couldn't help scoffing a little. "Maybe."

Vance actually rolled his eyes a little.

"You don't have to tell me that's ridiculous."

"Good."

Vance turned back to Gibbs.

"You've seen other selkies?"

"Yeah."

"You've seen them change?"

"Yeah. A couple of times."

"Is it the same as when you see Agent McGee change?"

Gibbs smiled and shook his head. "No."

"Where do they even come from?"

"Don't know. Maybe they've just always been here."

One more unsatisfied nod and Vance began to walk back to the building.

"Next week?" Gibbs asked.

Vance paused.

"Next week."

Then, he left. Gibbs knew that he couldn't blame Vance for being so shocked and so unsure of what to do about this, but he also sympathized with Tim's fear of losing what he had come to rely on so heavily. However, Gibbs had already promised himself that he wasn't going to let Tim lose what he had. It was nice that he didn't have to fight for it.

Then, he smiled to himself. He might have to take it a bit easier on Vance for the next little while. As he struggled to wrap his mind around the existence of selkies, he wouldn't be quite so accepting of Gibbs' usual aggravation. Really, Tim's dire circumstances when they had initially found out who and what he was probably had been helpful in getting them to accept it. Everything depended on their believing him and helping him and so they'd had the beginning in a very rushed manner without time to properly analyze and wonder about it. That had come later, but after they'd already acted like it was true.

Regardless, Tim would be coming back, and eventually, things would get back to normal.

...or at least whatever now passed for normal.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Tim was almost hesitant as he walked up to the NCIS building. Now that Vance knew, it felt like there was a risk of everyone finding out at every single second. Vance was never someone he'd planned on telling. He did have plans to let his family know, to finally show them as he never had been able to show them before, but that would take some time to work out just so that he could do it once and then be done and to make sure that no one else there would find out. He knew that it wasn't really part of the selkies' plans to have him telling anyone other than those who knew already, but this was a necessity. In reality, he wasn't telling people who didn't already know (well, except for Vance). He was simply confirming what he'd already said.

"Are you ready, Tim?"

Tim looked back. Jimmy was just coming up the walk.

"Maybe."

Jimmy smiled.

"You can do it. No one thinks you're crazy this time."

"Right. Everything is just so complicated right now."

"But it's a good complicated."

"Is there such a thing?" Tim asked.

"Sure. Just look at any family. Family is always complicated, but it's usually good. Besides, hasn't your life always been a little complicated?"

"Well..." Tim stopped. Jimmy was right, of course. Ever since he'd lost his skin and tried to navigate a life on land, things had been complicated. He wasn't sure why the complications were so much more difficult now, but it was true.

"Hasn't it?" Jimmy asked again.

"Yeah, but it seems worse somehow."

"You said it yourself. You thought you were making things better, but it just got harder. That makes it seem worse, I'm sure."

"And Vance knows now."

"But he's letting you come back."

"For now."

"It's going to be fine, Tim. Don't worry about it so much."

Tim looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey, I've had a year to get over it," Jimmy said.

"I'm still sorry."

Jimmy actually smiled.

"You don't need to be. I've dealt with it. It's fine. Now. And this will be fine, too. You know that the others won't let you get fired."

"If Vance was determined..."

"Not even then. They'd find a way. You're here for good, Tim. That's the way it is. So let's go inside."

Tim appreciate the peptalk _and_ the fact that Jimmy didn't inadvertently smack him on the back where it would really hurt. Tony probably would have without meaning to.

"Okay."

He took a deep breath and followed Jimmy into the building. Unlike the last time he'd returned to work after a time away recuperating, this time, Jimmy just rode with him to the bullpen level and then headed down to Autopsy. This time, there weren't any people staring at him in suspicion. Oh, he got a few looks since he'd been off work for a few weeks, but apparently everyone knew that he'd been injured because no one came over to ask where he'd been. A couple stopped by to welcome him back, but that was all.

By about noon, Tim was starting to feel the ache that said he was nearing his limit of productivity. He'd done his best, but he could honestly say that he didn't recommend getting bit by a seal...or even by a selkie in seal form. The wounds were plenty deep and very painful, especially now that the painkillers were wearing off.

Finally, Gibbs walked over.

"You okay?"

Tim wanted to say yes, to reestablish his presence, that he was supposed to be here and he was happy to be back, but he grimaced.

"Not now. I was."

"Okay. Go home."

"If I just had a little break, I could..."

"No, McGee. Go home." Then, he leaned over. "Your job will still be here. You're not losing it."

"What if Vance changes his mind?" Tim asked in a low voice.

"He won't. It's going to be fine. Go home. Come back tomorrow. Try again."

Tim sighed and nodded. He got up and couldn't suppress a wince as he pulled the still-healing muscles.

"See you tomorrow," Gibbs said.

No negotiation. Tim knew it, and he knew that he shouldn't even try. So he nodded once more and left the building.

"Hey, McGee!"

Tim paused and saw Tony running up behind him.

"Yeah?"

"You okay?"

"Yeah. Not great, but okay. Gibbs sent me home."

"First day back. You don't want to overdo it, right?"

"Yeah." Tim hesitated. "Hey...has anyone been... talking about me?"

Tony raised an eyebrow.

"You know what I mean."

"Yeah, and no. People are asking what happened since you're obviously hurting, but I haven't heard anything about you being nuts."

Tim nodded.

"There's no reason for them to think that this time, Tim. Why are you thinking about it?"

"Because...it happened once." Tim took a breath. "Tony, I'm afraid that I'm going to lose this. That I'm going to have to choose, but that it'll be another impossible choice. What if it is?"

"It won't be," Tony said. "We won't let it happen. None of us. Tim... This is going to sound weird for me to say and I'm going to feel weird saying it, but it's like your dad said, you have a new herd. That's us. And we're going to make sure that you're happy and that you're in the best place you can be. No way are we going to let selkies be better at it than we are."

Tim smiled, but he also felt more than a little touched.

"Thanks, Tony. ...I'd hug you, but it would hurt too much."

"Well, that would be too mushy anyway," Tony said. "You need a ride home?"

"No. I'll be okay. I'll go home, take my pill, and give my back a rest."

"And give yourself a rest, too. No more worrying."

"I can't promise that, but I can promise to try," Tim said.

"Okay. I'll take that, but I think Ziva might still come to check on you tonight."

Tim smiled. "I think I can handle that."

Feeling unaccountably comforted, Tim did go home. He had lunch, took a pill and then went to sleep.

For the next few days, Tim gradually felt better, but Gibbs still wasn't letting him stay the whole day, and Tim had to admit that he wasn't really ready for it, either. It was hard to admit it, but it was true. He just couldn't quite handle all that work required yet. But it didn't stop him from doing as much as he could.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

It wasn't every day that Vance had extra time in the mornings. He usually had a full docket from the moment he got to work. However, this time he did, and he decided to make use of it.

He left his office and saw Tim already there and working. Gibbs was also there, of course, but Tony and Ziva hadn't arrived yet...or they were working somewhere else in the building. Either way, that meant fewer witnesses, less attention. Vance walked down the stairs and approached Tim's desk, ignoring Gibbs completely.

"Agent McGee, I'd like to speak with you. Outside."

Tim looked up and Vance could see the worry in his eyes. He knew why, but maybe this could help them both.

"Yes, Director."

Vance led Tim outside and to the edge of the Anacostia.

"What is it, Director?"

"Why does this job mean so much to you, Agent McGee?" Vance asked.

"I've worked here for over ten years, sir," Tim said. "I have friends here and..."

Vance waved his hand in the air.

"No. That's not it. If it was just about longevity, even if it was just about your friends, you wouldn't care so much. A year ago, you said that your life was here. Why?"

"I don't... I don't know if I can really explain it in words, sir."

"Was what you told me back then true?"

"Mostly, yes. I tried to tell you the truth...without giving you all of it. I lied by omission, but what I told you about my parents was true. They really did find me on the beach and take me in, but what led to me being on the beach was that my skin had been stolen."

"Okay. Then, why is it that NCIS is your life and not your family?"

"It's not that they aren't important to me, sir. They're part of why I stayed. I love them, and they loved me before I knew what love even meant. ...but NCIS..." Tim hesitated.

Vance could see that he really was trying to explain something that was probably difficult to articulate, but he needed to hear it, even if it wasn't particularly eloquent. Finally, Tim took a breath and let it out. Then, he looked away from Vance and stared at the river. Vance didn't know what Tim was seeing, but eye contact wasn't necessary. He had seen all he needed to see before.

"From the time my parents took me in, I struggled, sir," Tim said, finally. "I couldn't fathom living on land. I couldn't fathom feeling anything but pain, misery and longing. That was the life I felt I could look forward to. Gradually, my parents and my sister helped me to see more, but I still always felt the pain. The pain never went away, but sometimes, I could forget it. I could set it aside, and that mostly happened when I could focus on something else. When I joined NCIS, it was because I needed a connection to the sea. Somehow, I needed to be able to touch it. I wasn't looking for anything more than that when I started, but I found more. I found people who were willing to support me, who worried about me when things started going wrong. When we found Karie Martinson and I realized who she was, that she was the one who had stolen my seal skin all those years ago, I desperately wanted to get it back. I thought that nothing could stop me now. ...until I realized that I would have to give everyone and everything up that I'd had over my years on land. ...and I realized how much I did _not_ want to do that. As strong as the pull to getting my skin was, the desire to stay here was actually stronger."

Tim paused for a long moment, and Vance was about to ask if he was done, but then, Tim turned to him, his expression was bleak.

"I was faced with an impossible choice. Find my seal skin and return to the sea, never to have any human life again, or destroy my last chance to be whole, to be without pain. And in that moment, I realized that it was worth it to feel pain and feel love on land instead of being whole and in the sea. So they destroyed my seal skin for me. I've never felt something like that before. I could never go through it again. It was like being burned alive. I never thought there was even a ghost of a chance that I'd get it back. No one had ever survived having their seal skin destroyed before. I gave up being whole for being loved," Tim said, earnestly. "I don't know if I can really help you understand how big that decision was for me. I guess it would be something like that guy who was forced to cut off his own arm in order to get back to his family. It was the love of his family that got him there, helped him survive. That's what I was doing, but it wasn't a limb, it was half of my existence."

That was a vivid comparison. Vance had read about the man who had been hiking and then been pinned to the ground by a large boulder on his arm. He had survived, but no one would have thought he could do what he did.

"And then... my skin grew back. And I thought that I could actually be whole and still have that love that I had grown to depend on, the one thing that had staved off my pain. That's why I hid it. I wanted to be here. I fought to be here, and my biggest fear is that I'll still lose it, that I'll be whole and yet still lose all that I've gained over the years simply because I'm different."

Vance nodded and it was his turn to look away, to look at the river and gather his thoughts.

"Sir, there's nothing more I can tell you that would explain any better, but words aren't enough to convey how much I want to stay here, be with my friends, be with my family, and yet still be myself."

Finally, Vance turned back to Tim.

"Agent McGee, I can't promise that I won't be thinking of you differently. What you told me and shown me are not anywhere in my realm of experience and I'm afraid that it will take time, a lot of time, for me to fully accept knowing what you are. That being said, however, I also can't ignore what you've done during your tenure here, and I can't ignore what you've told me. You've said how much you want to be here, and quite frankly, we need people who are committed to the job."

"You're not going to change your mind, sir?"

"No. Just be aware that I may look at you differently for a while. It will take time."

"Yes, sir. I understand that much. Thank you," Tim said fervently.

"You're welcome. Now, get back to work, and please, don't make me regret doing this."

Tim smiled. "I'll try not to."

"Good."

Vance gestured and Tim willingly walked back to the building. Then, Vance turned back to the river once more. Yes, it would take time, but he was feeling more sure now that he could accept it eventually.

...and he could hope that he never had to put this information in a report.

And who knew but that having a seal in NCIS might come in handy someday?

One last look at the river and Vance walked back into the building to start his day.


	18. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

After two weeks at work on partial duty, Tim was finally able to put in a full day. That also meant that he was finally able to think about going out and swimming again. He began to think about where he'd go, when, and whether or not he'd be able to track down the seals.

"What are you thinking about, McGee?" Ziva asked.

Tim smiled. "I think it's about time for me to go swimming again."

Tony and Ziva exchanged worried looks. Tim knew that they couldn't fully understand his need to be in the ocean, but that was all right.

"Are you sure about that, Probie?" Tony asked.

"Positive."

"Well...then, you must call us when you get back," Ziva said. "Just in case."

"All right. I'm going on Sunday when we're off duty."

They both nodded reluctantly, but Tim felt good about it. He would go and he would be able to revel in being whole again.

Gibbs walked in and looked at him.

"McGee?"

"I'll be careful," Tim said quickly.

Then, Gibbs smiled slightly.

"Have fun."

Tim smiled back.

"I will."

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tim saw the seals offshore. Carefully, he looked around. No one was yet out on the beach. It was early yet. He smiled and put on his skin before waddling out into the waves. It took a couple of minutes, but then, he was swimming smoothly out to them. They were excited to see him and began to frolic around him as he swam. For hours, they played close to shore. Tim felt a little bit of soreness as he swam but otherwise, it was just about perfect.

And then, in the afternoon, he sensed another presence and a solitary seal swam over to join the small herd.

_What are you doing here?_ Tim silently asked his father.

_I could feel your excitement. I decided to come._

_They let you?_

_Yes. Reluctantly. You look well._

_I am. Still a little sore, but I'm mostly recovered._

_That is good. You are well in all?_

Tim smiled inwardly at the awkward question. He knew that asking about mental stability just wasn't something the selkies did or even thought about doing.

_Yes, I am. I'm happy. I'm whole._

_That is very good. How well do you swim?_

There was a slight challenge to that question.

_Why don't we find out?_ Tim asked.

Then, without another thought, the two selkies took off in the water, the seals trailing along behind.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Gibbs was sitting in his basement, waiting. He was waiting. Not worrying. Tim was an adult. He would be fine.

So he was waiting.

It was close to midnight when his phone rang.

"_I'm home, Boss. It was great. I think it'll work out just fine. The seals like me."_

Gibbs couldn't help but smile at how excited, how contented and how _happy_ Tim sounded.

"Good."

"_Boss...thanks for everything. I needed this."_

"Good."

Tim said a quick good-bye and hung up. Gibbs sat there, thinking about how much everything had changed in the last year, and even with all the difficulties, he couldn't help but think that things had changed for the better. Certainly, they had for Tim, but overall, things were better than they had been.

With that thought, he decided to stop sitting around and go to bed.

x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Tim lay in his bed, his heart full to bursting. It had been as good a day as he'd had in weeks. It was wonderful.

"My life is perfect," he whispered. "Just what I wanted."

Maybe, someday, there would be another selkie story, a happy one. About a selkie who was able to stay on land and yet still be in the ocean. Maybe.

Then, he closed his eyes and tried to sleep.

FINIS!


End file.
